Tour de France leader Tadej Pogachar finished a "boring" stage on Saturday, finishing safely in the peloton of Colombie-les-Deux-Eglise.

As has been the case with previous sprinter-friendly stages, there was little action on stage 8 until the final, with only polka-dot jersey holder Jonas Abrahamsen (Uno X Mobility) breaking for most of the day.

Pogachar, who said on Friday that he had "little to look forward to this week," must be looking forward to the GC showdown on the gravel roads around Troyes on stage 9.

"We need to be even sharper and more focused than we were today," Pogachar said after stage 8. And we need to be careful on each gravel section, each entrance, each exit. There could be wind and rain

"There are going to be a lot of things that could cause us to crash or get stuck behind. So it won't be decisive, but we could lose the Tour tomorrow."

"You can do your best on gravel, but if you have a puncture at the wrong time, you will lose time for sure. Tomorrow it will be all about team control and concentration to the finish."

Some riders and team staff, notably Soudal-Quick Step boss Patrick Lefebvre, have spoken out against the inclusion of gravel stages in the Grand Tour.

But Pogachar brushed off such questions, saying only that he is here to ride this stage and that "many other things can happen," like many other stages in the Tour.

"There is always the question, 'Is this stage included in the Tour or not? It is just another obstacle in the Tour de France. Like any other stage, a lot can happen. You have to be prepared from the start to the finish. It can get complicated in the race

"There are no favourites to win tomorrow. Not if Mats Pedersen is here. There is no team to control and no breakaway group. Tomorrow will be interesting."

One thing that can be expected in this race is the hierarchy of Pogachar's UAE Team Emirates. The first mountain stage of the Tour over the Col du Galibier created drama in the camp as Joan Almeida appeared to reprimand Juan Ayuso for not leading the race.

Pogachar said the mood within the team was good and responded to a question about rumors of discontent with a chuckling gesture.

"I read some articles," he said. It's clear that we have a strong team that really gets along at GC, including Joanne, Juan, and Adam (Yates)." João, Juan, Adam (Yates), et al, a really strong team.

"I wonder what the atmosphere will be like in the final week. It's my first time racing with Joan and Juan, and I haven't raced with Juan much. It should go well. We all know why we are here and what our main goal is. So far so good

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