Like death and taxes, the Tour de France has two certainties. The sweltering heat and Tadej Pogachar's attacks are now part of the daily rhythm. Jonas Vingegaard and Wout Van Aert discussed the former behind the podium in Foix. [Today it was humid. Other days it was drier," said Vingegaard. Van Aert nodded as he climbed onto his bike for a warm-down, and the two pedaled side by side as they waited for the podium ceremony to begin. One day to go.

Vingegaard had coped comfortably with the soaring temperatures up to this point, and the humidity of stage 16 in the Portes de Res and Mules de Péguerre did not seem to faze him at all.

Similarly, Vingegaard has been quick to react to Pogachar's every acceleration so far in the Tour, and he maintained that record on the first day in the Pyrenees, even when the Slovenian tried to turn up the heat in unexpected places. Along with Pogachar, Vingegaard finished the day 5:54 behind stage winner Hugo Uhl (Israel Premier Tech) and maintained a 2:22 overall lead.

"I just do my best every day," Vingegaard said. "I know Taddeusi is going to attack, so it's important every day to stay with him and not leave gaps on him. Of course, if another rider attacks, you have to go with him. Today I was able to do that."

Pogachar's first acceleration occurred near the top of Porto de Res with 59km to go, and Vingegaard quickly followed, reminiscent of Contador and Schleck in 2010, with the pair stalling soon after and looking at each other. Inevitably, Pogachar kicked again, but still Vingegaard did not give an inch.

On the way down the other side, Pogachar again went on the offensive, bringing to mind Merckx and Ocaña at the Col de Mante, but Vingegaard's descent was less nerve-wracking. But Vingegaard's descent was unnerving. The danger quickly dissipated, and he waited for the podium contenders to catch up.

"I expected him to attack at any moment. I guess it suits me." Well, at least going early is not a bad idea. For me, there's a sense that the harder the better."

Tuesday's stage was the first stage of an imposing troika in the Pyrenees and the first since Vingegaard lost two of his most important teammates, Primoz Roglic and Steven Kruijswijk. Because of their absence and the peculiarities of parkour, Jumbovisma opted for an adventurous allocation of resources, sending Wout van Aert and Nathan van Hooydonk into the early break, with Sepp Kuss acting as Sherpa behind Vingegaard.

"The last climb was so steep that Jonas could have been isolated on the summit," said Hoidnk. 'But Sepp is very strong and he was right there. But Sepp is very strong and he was there. Still, it was the best tactic for me to go to the front and wait for Jonas in the finale." With three riders in the yellow jersey group, it was easy to respond to any attacks".

By then, Pogachar was, at least temporarily, discouraged by his effort. His teammate Rafau Mayka had set the tempo on the Mules de Péguerre, ending Romain Bardet's challenge for the podium and temporarily pulling away from third-placed Geraint Thomas (Ineos). As was the case at the top of the rail, Kuss took the reins on the approach to the summit and Van Aert led the way down the other side to the foie.

"Not only Sepp but the whole team was great today," said Vingegaard. 'Christophe Laporte and Thiesj Benoot pulled first, then Sepp took over on the climb. Then Wout and Nathan were waiting for us up front. We are a strong team and luckily today I was able to follow Pogachar."

A year ago, Vingegaard dropped his rival in Mont Ventoux and fought him bravely in the Pyrenees. The gap has narrowed considerably in this Tour, but Vingegaard, who famously worked part-time in a fish factory before turning pro in Jumbo-Visma, probably had plenty of room for improvement.

"Since turning pro in 2019, I've been working with Tim Heemskerk as a trainer. If you ask Tim, I think he will tell you that he was not a pro when he joined this team," said Vingegaard." I think I've grown a lot because of what we've done."

Pogachar can bear witness to that, but that won't stop his onslaught over the next two days in the Pyrenees, with summit finishes at Peyragudo and Hautacam. The problem for the defending champion, however, is that he is not currently feeling the strain of the yellow.

"At least I don't feel like my condition is going down," Vingegaard said. 'I recover really well in the Grand Tours. I feel like I needed a rest day after the crash, but I'm actually looking forward to the next day."