Tadej Pogačar praised his rivals and hailed a golden age of cycling, after winning stage 19 of the Tour de France at Isola 2000 in impressive style.
The UAE Team Emirates rider attacked the group of favourites with 8.6km left of the finishing climb, passing stragglers from an earlier break to catch and pass lone leader Matteo Jorgensen (Visma-Lease a Bike) with 1.8km to go.
It puts him a near-unassailable 5:03 ahead of Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike) going into the final tough two stages.
Speaking about the rivalry between the pair after the stage, Pogačar said: "I have a ton of respect for Jonas. I wouldn't wish for a better rival. I think with Jonas, Primož [Roglic] and Remco [Evenepoel], this really is a golden era of cycling.
"I can even say that myself and I'm enjoying these battles between each other."
Pogačar added that he enjoyed watching them race when he wasn't there – although that is probably more about spotting weaknesses and insights rather than fandom.
"This also motivates me and it's super good to see, and it's super exciting cycling," he said.
Pogačar was also asked about his own comments declaring that he was his old self again, and conceded that this latest version might be even better or, at the very least, "one of the best me".
"I think I'm a little bit better than the old me," he said. "I'm more experienced, I don't make too many mistakes. If you're anxious in the race this is super bad, and this year I was never under stress I was always in control of my own mind."
This was helped, he said, by the fact that he took the lead so early on stage two, giving him confidence, motivation, and allowing him to ride "with almost no pressure" throughout the last week.
"We will evaluate the numbers afterwards but for sure this is one of the best me," he smiled.
Pogačar had certainly prepared well for today's stage. He described riding the final climb to Isola 2000 15 times during a pre-Tour training camp, and the white knuckle descent of the Cime de la Bonette that preceded it on the stage "four or five times".
When he said, "I had pretty good knowledge of the roads today," it was almost a quip.
Whichever version of himself he might be, it's certainly a fastidious one. And, perhaps, a golden one too.
