Whether it be cobbles, mountains, or a tough uphill finish like stage 8 of the Tour de France, race leader Tadey Pogachar (UAE Team Emirates) has so far shown no signs of letting up.

One of several top contenders to crash at about 60 km/h early in stage 8, Pogachar appeared to have no major worries caused by even a high-speed crash early in the race.

However, the DNS of teammate Vegard Stake Rengen on Saturday (after the Norwegian tested positive for COVID-19) was both a setback for UAE Team Emirates and a reminder that the virus brings its own challenges as well ...

Pogacar, who was always in the lead in the crucial final kilometers and took third place on the stage with a short but sharp uphill sprint, was asked on Saturday if he considered COVID-19 his biggest rival heading to Paris.

But the Slovenian dismissed the notion outright, saying that even if COVID-19 could spoil the Tour de France, his sporting foe in terms of yellow contenders had not changed.

"COVID is not a rival, it is a virus that affects things and could ruin the Tour," Pogachar said at a short press conference.

Still, Pogachar acknowledged that the loss of Vegard Stake Rengen, one of three riders who abandoned the Tour on Saturday along with COVID-19, along with Gianni Moscon (Astana-Cazakstan) and Geoffrey Bouchard (AG2R-Citroen), was important. He admitted that it was.

"He was a big part of the team. He was really strong, in great shape, and he pulled us everywhere, on the flats and on the hills. It will be difficult without him, but I think we can manage to get to Paris with seven of us."

Pogachar strongly appreciated the support from the fans along the way, but even claimed that he was afraid of being at a disadvantage in terms of COVID-19.

"Every day I see a lot of people screaming on the road and on the climb. I hope Vegal will go home because of that and we will be safe until the end."

Sports director Joxen Fernandez Mazzin also echoed Pogachar's words, emphasizing Vegal's role in controlling the breakaway group at the start of the stage. He also said that as a further health precaution, each rider now sleeps in separate rooms at the team hotel and wears a separate soignée

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As for the Tour itself, Pogachar had little to say at the main press conference other than that he already knew about the Lausanne finish and that it was a good finale for him, but the team will pass through southwest Switzerland on Sunday and return to France for the mountain The team was aware that the stage would be a far more complex challenge.

"Today [Saturday], the idea was to control all the breaks, not to try to win the stage, but to ride calmly," said the team leader. 'The last few kilometers were complicated and I was nervous, so I wanted to control it so I wouldn't lose time on the yellow jersey.'

Pogachar's chance for a third straight win came with little effort, but with the 15km Pas de Morguins Class 1 mountain awaiting in the finale, Sunday could be a set piece battle between the favorites.

"It's a very technical stage, and the key is to get Taddej and as many riders as possible together on the final climb. It will be a very tough stage for everyone."