Two days after seemingly being eliminated in the overall classification of the Tour de France (open in new tab), Bahrain McLaren (open in new tab) leader Mikel Landa (open in new tab) revived his chances of a good result in Paris thanks to an impressive race in the Pyrenees

Landa, the leader of the team.

Landa was upset that he could not join the fray when the echelon formed on Friday leading up to stage 7 in Lavolle after a crash involving himself and several teammates, and refused to talk to journalists afterward. But the weekend was a different story.

Even though the joint fightback behind Tadej Pogachar (UAE Team Emirates) and Richie Porte (Trek-Segafredo) did not go well, they regained seven positions and moved up to 12th overall.

On Sunday, however, he shone far more brightly, fiercely pulling away from the leaders on the steep slopes of the Col de Marie Blanc with Primoš Roglic (Jumbo-Visma), Pogachar, and Egan Bernal (Ineos Grenadiers). Although he missed out on a time bonus by finishing fifth in Larence, he was well positioned to return to the top 10 overall.

Landa, who finished 1:42 behind Roglic, said, "I felt really good all day.

"It was a very bad night (losing time at Echelon). The 1:21 time loss was because I had four big mountain stages that I rode well," Landa said. The Tour doesn't allow for any mistakes, but I'm very happy with the way the week ended.

"I crashed again on the first day of the race and lost time in Echelon. There is no reason not to try to get on the podium. There are a lot of strong racers here, but I'm going to give it a shot."

When asked what he thought of his rivals' performance, Landa responded in his typical candid manner.

"We talked a lot about whether Bernal is strong or not. He's second overall and Ineos always shows up in the right place at the right time," Landa said.

"Roglic and Pogachar are also very strong. Pogachar's attack on the climb is really explosive and it is very difficult to get on his wheels. In the meantime, I will be able to try to forge an alliance."