Thu Jul 24 15:00:00 UTC 2025: **O’Connor Victorious on Grueling Queen Stage of 2025 Tour de France; Pogačar Extends Lead**
VIF, FRANCE – Ben O’Connor claimed a stunning victory on Stage 18 of the 2025 Tour de France, conquering a day of immense difficulty featuring 5,600 meters of climbing, including ascents of the Col du Glandon, Col de la Madeleine, and the dreaded Col de la Loze.
O’Connor launched a decisive attack in the final kilometers, displaying “great power, boldness and opportunism” to secure his second career Tour de France stage win. He crossed the finish line 1 minute and 46 seconds ahead of Tadej Pogačar.
While O’Connor celebrated his triumph, Pogačar continued to tighten his grip on the yellow jersey. The Slovenian rider finished second, increasing his overall lead to 4 minutes and 26 seconds over Jonas Vingegaard.
Vingegaard, despite his team’s efforts throughout the stage, could not match Pogačar’s pace on the final climb. After all the work from Visma-Lease a Bike during the stage, and all the talk from Vingegaard about wanting to attack the yellow jersey, it was a bit underwhelming to see the Dane put just one attack in on the final climb. He finished third on the stage, 1 minute and 55 seconds behind O’Connor. He looked spent by the end, and told a post-stage interview that he does not believe he’s ever done a harder stage at the Tour.
The challenging stage saw significant shifts in the general classification. Florian Lipowitz managed to hold onto his third-place overall, narrowly edging out Onley. Vauquelin moved up into 6th.
The stage was also marked by drama further down the field. Roglič was dropped from the lead group, and Carlos Rodriguez abandoned the race due to a crash sustained in the previous stage.
Looking ahead, Pogačar appears to be in a commanding position to secure his second Tour de France title, but with the final Alpine stages and the Paris circuit still to come, anything can happen.
First Piper 