Will it be Tadej Pogačar or Jonas Vingegaard? There's more to this year's Tour de France than these two, of course, but it's undeniable that the race for the maillot jaune will focus on the sport's two heavyweights (or should that be lightweights?)

The 2026 Tour de France starts here. There are just a few days to go until the Grand Départ in Barcelona and The Cycling Podcast kicks off a three-part preview of the greatest race in the world by weighing up the two outstanding riders – the champion, Tadej Pogačar and the challenger Jonas Vingegaard.

Join Lionel Birnie and Graham Willgoss as they find out about the two men who have dominated the Tour de France since 2020. Graham speaks to journalist Andy McGrath, author of Unstoppable, a biography of the Slovenian, about the man aiming to join the five-time winner's club. And Lionel talks to a man our listeners will be very familiar with, Brian Nygaard, who has followed Vingegaard's career from the beginning.

Part two and three of The XL Preview series will cover the route, and all the other contenders to look out for, and will be released soon.

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The Cycling Podcast was founded in 2013 by Richard Moore, Daniel Friebe and Lionel Birnie.