Tour De France 2021 Stage 18: The Undisputed King Of The Mountains?

So, friends, that's it for another Tour de France - and what a memorable one it's been. Wout van Aert joined a super-exclusive club of riders to have won a mountain stage, a time trial and a sprint with victory on the Champs, Mark Cavendish did a Lazarus to claim four stages and the green jersey, and Tadeg Pogacar confirmed what we all were starting to suspect - that he's on course to become a proper legend of this race, remembered for centuries to come. Ned, Matt, David, Pete and Chris reflect with takeaway pizza and super-strength home brew.

Age: 22; starts: 2; wins: 2. It seems that 2 is indeed the magic number for Tadeg Pogacar, who is set to retain his Tour de France crown having finished seventh in the penultimate stage time trial. For the record, the prodigiously talented Wout van Aert took the spoils. Pogacar will officially win the yellow jersey after Sunday's final stage to Paris, when, by tradition, the leader is not challenged. Ned, Matt, David, Pete and Chris wonder whether he will be - or at least if we'll see anyone make an uncharacteristically audacious bid to claim a final win in what has been a vintage edition of the race ...

It was an emotional outing for stage winner Matej Mohoric, who made his feelings known about the well-documented police raid on the Bahrain-Victorious team hotel on finishing first in Libourne. His zipping-of-the-mouth gesture as he crossed the line recalled that of the disgraced Lance Armstrong back in 2004, and has thus divided opinion in the court of public opinion. But the likeable Slovenian receives broad support from Ned, Matt, David, Pete and Chris, who explain why in the latest episode of the pod. We also hear from the man himself, as well as Tadeg Pogacar and an unusually chipper and positive Mark Cavendish.

On a day that Tadeg Pogacar once again showed everyone who’s boss, Ned, Chris, Matt, David and Pete discuss the vagaries of the King Of The Mountains competition, which Pogacar also claimed with his victory in Luz Ardiden, such is the weighting of points towards the big climbs. The Slovenian is now likely to arrive in Paris on Sunday's processional final stage as the owner of three of the four race jerseys - the yellow, the polka dot and white garments - for the second consecutive year. Suffice to say, there’s a fair bit of disagreement among the troops as to whether or not this is fair - initially, at least ...

A largely uneventful day's racing culminated in fine style, as new best friends Tadeg Pogacar and Jonas Vingegaard combined forces to see off a sneaky Richard Carapaz on the brutal final climb on the Col du Portet. Carapaz slipstreamed his rivals all the way up the mountain, then made a dashing thrust for victory a few hundred metres from the line. But the move was covered by two of the most precocious riders the Tour has seen in recent years, with Pogacar coming out on top. A thrilling day, in the end, as discussed by Ned, Matt, Pete, Chris and David....

... by which we mean, Austria's Patrick Konrad, who won a thrilling victory in Saint-Gaudens. Hence, Paddy's Day. And, appropriately enough, Ned, Pete, David and Matt spend a fair bit of the pod discussing the race for Green, with the latter in particular having a wonderfully speculative hypothesis as to how Cav could lose it. The lads also doff their chapeaux to Lachlan Morton, the Aussie cyclist who today completed his charity endurance ride of the Tour route in just 18 days, riding solo and unsupported and often sleeping wild and sourcing his own food - raising nigh on £400,000 for World Bicycle Relief in the process. Bravo, sir!

At least, that's how Ned, Matt, Chris and Pete view their second crack at a rest day pod. Among the subjects up for discussion - in the absence of interviews - the chances of anyone upsetting Tadeg Pogacar in the remaining days of the Tour, and the intriguing battle to claim to Polka Dot jersey.

... well, actually Sepp Kuss didn't chase it down, but rather broke away on the final climb in the Pyrenees to become the first American to win a stage of the Tour since Tyler Farrar in 2011. Fittingly, Andorra is the country in which he resides, too. Ned Boulting, David Millar, Chris Boardman, Matt Rendell and Pete Kennaugh reflect - and also lament the pitfalls of betting on cycling. Don't do it, kids.

On the day that Bauke Mollema claimed a fine solo victory in Quillan, Ned, David, Pete, Matt and Chris spend much of the podcast coming up with bizarre alter egos, and reflecting upon some of the less imaginative nicknames for riders on the Tour. The also ask whether anyone can pose a late challenge to Tadeg Pogacar as the race moves towards its final week.

Well, he's only gone and done it. In defiance of all expectations prior to the 2021 Tour, Mark Cavendish equalled Eddic Merckx's stage victory record with a typically gutsy and audacious ride on between Nimes and Carcassonne. It's worth listening to this pod for his interview alone, not to mention the musings about mythology and legend from Ned, Matt, David, Pete and Chris. Chapeau, Mark, as monsieur Millar might say ...