Pogacar crushes Tour de France rivals and storms the Tourmalet to regain overall lead

GAVARNIE-GEDRE, France (AP) — Tadej Pogacar produced a tremendous solo ride on the iconic Col du Tourmalet on Thursday to earn a 23rd Tour de France stage victory, reclaim control of the race and sap his rivals' morale after just six days of racing.

Pogacar, who first wore the yellow jersey after winning at Les Angles earlier this week, made the most of the first big mountain trek of this year's Tour in the Pyrenees to stamp his authority, sending a clear message to his rivals that he remains in a class of his own.

The two-time world champion covered the final 43 kilometers (around 27 miles) alone, crossed the Stage 6 finish line 2 minutes, 38 seconds ahead of his main challenger, Jonas Vingegaard, and reclaimed the coveted jersey.

“I would say this one goes in the top five of my Tour de France victories," Pogacar said. “This is an incredible victory, and one of the sweetest for sure. I was not calculating seconds or minutes, I just wanted to go full gas all the way to the finish.”

Pogacar's teammate, Isaac del Toro, was third, 2:57 off the pace, ahead of Remco Evenepoel and Paul Seixas. Overall, Vingegaard lags 2:42 behind Pogacar, with del Toro in third place.

With his latest show of force, the UAE Emirates-XRG leader took a big step toward a record-equaling fifth Tour victory. Only Belgian Eddy Merckx, Spaniard Miguel Indurain and Frenchmen Jacques Anquetil and Bernard Hinault have won five Tours.

The stage started in scorching heat and was marked by several unsuccessful attempts of breakaways early on. Pogacar's teammates, along with those of Vingegaard in Visma-Lease a Bike, set a fast tempo even before the day’s biggest climbs.

The last stage in the Pyrenees took riders through two iconic ascents, the Col d’Aspin and the Tourmalet.

Once Ben O’Connor managed to get away, he was allowed some freedom because he was not a threat in the general classification. He was first at the foot of Aspin and was caught with about 5 kilometers of the climb left.

Riders then tackled the grueling 17.1 kilometer ascent up the Tourmalet, the first HC climb of the 2026 Tour — which means Hors Catégorie (beyond classification), because it is the hardest level.

Overnight leader Torstein Træen was dropped before del Toro accelerated with his leader on his wheel about 4.5 kilometers from the summit. Træen later crashed on the descent and was assessed by the race's medical team before resuming his effort.

Pogacar then went solo, with Vingegaard digging deep to limit his losses. Pogacar reached the summit first, and Vingegaard tried to claw back his 30-second deficit in the downhill. But tucked into an aerodynamic position, his rival took the same risks and was even faster.

Pogacar had a lead of more than a minute as he tackled the final climb up to the finish line in the town of Gavarnie-Gedre. He never looked back and the gap kept increasing.

“I woke up at 7 this morning and my mind was going crazy,” Pogacar said. “I was really excited for today. I knew it was going to be a good day.”

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France's Paul Seixas, left, rides during the sixth stage of the Tour de France cycling race with start in Pau and finish in Gavarnie-Gedre, France, Thursday, July 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy)

Spectators cheer Slovenia's Tadej Pogacar during the sixth stage of the Tour de France cycling race with start in Pau and finish in Gavarnie-Gedre, France, Thursday, July 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)

Mexico's Isaac Del Toro and Slovenia's Tadej Pogacar lead the race during the sixth stage of the Tour de France cycling race over 201.5 kilometers (115.5 miles) with start in Pau and finish in Gavarnie-Gedre, France, Thursday, July 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)

Slovenia's Tadej Pogacar rides during he sixth stage of the Tour de France cycling race with start in Pau and finish in Gavarnie-Gedre, France, Thursday, July 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)

Slovenia's Tadej Pogacar celebrates as he crosses the finish line to win the sixth stage of the Tour de France cycling race with start in Pau and finish in Gavarnie-Gedre, France, Thursday, July 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)

LONDON (AP) — Karolina Muchova ended Coco Gauff’s run at Wimbledon in a drama-filled tiebreaker to reach the final on Thursday.

Muchova won 6-2, 1-6, 7-6 (10) to become the fourth Czech woman in the last six years to reach the championship match of the grass-court Grand Slam.

“It was such a big fight,” Muchova said. “It was a roller coaster.”

Gauff wasted a match point in the tiebreaker when she dinked an attackable forehand into the net to follow a powerful first serve.

Muchova then produced a lob winner to set up her first match point, which she lost when she slipped to the grass and a passing shot from Gauff sailed by her.

But Muchova quickly set up another match point and produced a shot to the corner. Gauff reached the ball but her forehand response landed in the net and Muchova covered her hands in disbelief.

“You’re up and down in 10 seconds. You have a match point, then match point down. It’s no time to think, but very nerve-wracking,” Muchova said. “I’m really kind of shaking and trying to sink it in.”

It will be the ninth-ranked Muchova’s second Grand Slam final after losing to Iga Swiatek in the 2023 French Open championship match.

Muchova could face another Czech player in Saturday’s final, with Linda Noskova to play Marta Kostyuk of Ukraine in the other semifinal next on Centre Court.

The other Czech women in the Wimbledon final recently were: Karolina Pliskova (runner-up in 2021); Marketa Vondrousova (champion in 2023); and Barbora Krejcikova (champion in 2024).

For Gauff, it was still her most successful Wimbledon. Previously, the seventh-ranked American had gone only as far as the fourth round three times – including during her breakthrough run as a 15-year-old in 2019.

The men’s semifinals on Friday feature top-ranked and defending champion Jannik Sinner against seven-time Wimbledon winner Novak Djokovic and French Open champion Alexander Zverev against British wild card Arthur Fery.

It was another hot day in London with the temperature soaring to 91 degrees Fahreinheit (33 Celsius), prompting spectators to fan themselves in the stands in an attempt to keep cool.

Muchova appeared to be struggling physically as the match wore on, bending over in exhaustion after one long rally and holding her abdomen in apparent pain during the final game.

“I’m OK,” Muchova said. “I just was trying to catch a breath.”

Muchova said she took a photo of Centre Court when she came to practice on the famed lawn ahead of her first career match on the most revered court in tennis.

“There are so many of us tennis players and I don’t think many of us get to play on this court,” she said. “It’s just a nice moment to experience all of this and this court is beautiful.”

AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis

Karolina Muchova of the Czech Republic celebrates her victory against Coco Gauff of the United States in their semifinal women's singles match at the Wimbledon Tennis Championships in London, Thursday, July 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)

Coco Gauff of the United States loses her balance during a point against Karolina Muchova of the Czech Republic in their semifinal women's singles match at the Wimbledon Tennis Championships in London, Thursday, July 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)

Karolina Muchova of the Czech Republic celebrates her victory against Coco Gauff of the United States in their semifinal women's singles match at the Wimbledon Tennis Championships in London, Thursday, July 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)

Karolina Muchova of the Czech Republic celebrates her victory against Coco Gauff of the United States, background, in their semifinal women's singles match at the Wimbledon Tennis Championships in London, Thursday, July 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

Coco Gauff of the United States returns the ball to Karolina Muchova of the Czech Republic in their semifinal women's singles match at the Wimbledon Tennis Championships in London, Thursday, July 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)

Karolina Muchova of the Czech Republic serves to Coco Gauff of the United States in their semifinal women's singles match at the Wimbledon Tennis Championships in London, Thursday, July 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)

Coco Gauff of the United States returns the ball to Karolina Muchova of the Czech Republic in their semifinal women's singles match at the Wimbledon Tennis Championships in London, Thursday, July 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

Karolina Muchova of the Czech Republic returns the ball to Coco Gauff of the United States in their semifinal women's singles match at the Wimbledon Tennis Championships in London, Thursday, July 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)

Coco Gauff of the United States reacts after losing a point against Karolina Muchova of the Czech Republic in their semifinal women's singles match at the Wimbledon Tennis Championships in London, Thursday, July 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)