The first day of the Tour de France Pyrenees brought some turbulence on GC as Romain Bardet lost a few minutes in the battle for the podium, but the top three overall places remained unassailable. Tadej Pogachar's long-distance attack on the Porte de Res ended in failure, while Jonas Vingegaard was comfortable on the Mules de Péguerre.

Ineos Grenadiers leader Geraint Thomas showed some weakness, losing contact on the steep slopes of the Péguerre summit, but with the help of his teammates, including a recovering Dani Martinez, Thomas returned to the yellow jersey.

However, with Bardet dropping to ninth place by 3:36, Thomas is now 2:02 behind fourth-placed Nairo Quintana.

After a hot and humid day in Foix, Thomas told the assembled journalists after the stage finish that he was pleased with his steady return to Pogachar and Vingegaard. His teammates Martinez and Adam Yates (who was 1:22 behind on this stage) expressed their gratitude.

"It's good to see the team getting stronger. Dani is recovering from his illness and Castro is on the mend. We have a big cheer for Yatesy and Tom, as well as for Yatesy. [He's out of contract this year, so there's always another factor that comes into play as far as whether or not he's committed to his teammates, but he's really committed to me. He was really strong, he set a really good pace, and we were able to close the gap on the leaders.

Thomas said that he did not know what would happen to him and his rivals after the rest day in Carcassonne, and that it was important for him to get up the two climbs as far as possible, and that he was happy to have gained time on Valde even if the "big two" proved to be stuck so far

"The front two are super strong, so it's hard to do anything with them, but you never know. I didn't expect Pogacar to have a day like that in Granon.

"It was hot out there and I don't know how everyone will hold up after a rest day. I was nervous to start in that wind, but the braking was quick. I'm glad Dani was there."

"I just had to do the two climbs as well as I could. I paced myself as I have done most of the race. It was nice to gain a little time on Bardet with that, but the others are still out there. It was a good day."

Two summit finishes await Thomas and the rest of the Tour de France peloton.

Thomas said that it will be a tough day in the Pyrenees, adding that the high temperatures of the past few days may have had an impact. As for Pogachar and his attacking riding, he reiterated that "it's fun to watch at home, but not so much from inside the peloton."

"It's like a three-day block," he said. Every day will be hard."

"Every day will be hard. There are four solid climbs tomorrow and three the day after tomorrow, but they will be even tougher. There is still a lot that can happen, especially in this heat. You might be able to get through one day [especially in this heat], but there could be a reaction to it.

As for Pogachar, "In TT, he will need more time. 'Vingegaard is capable of anything. It's a tough race, but they're both riding super strong, so it's interesting to watch at home.