When Pogačar Played the Anonymous Boyfriend: The Sporza Sketch, the 'HAB' Shirt, and Žigart's Remarkable Comeback

The evening before the final stage, the odds were uncertain — a "55% chance" that Pogačar would agree to participate. On Sunday morning, the message came through that it was on . The Sporza crew drove to the course and at 2:15 PM received a pin drop: Pogačar would be at a corner along the Col d'Èze climb where the family camper van was parked .

Pogačar wasn't there at first — he was out on a training ride. After an anxious hour-long wait, he appeared "swiftly around the corner," wearing a silly carnival hat and riding his rainbow-striped world champion bike. Fans immediately crowded around him . Merckpoel gathered her courage, approached him, and the moment he heard "Sporza," he nodded knowingly and suggested they film quietly behind the camper van . Even there, fans kept interrupting; Žigart's father had to step in and keep people at a distance so the crew could shoot .

How Pogačar played along

Merckpoel explained the concept in one minute: he would be treated as just another anonymous boyfriend standing in his partner's shadow. Pogačar "immediately realized where we wanted to go" . The resulting interview is a masterclass in deadpan comedy.

Here are the key exchanges:

When asked, "Do you cycle, too?" Pogačar replied, "I cycle with her. Sometimes she drops me and sometimes I have to let her go. I mainly like to go just for coffee."

Asked what it was like living in Žigart's shadow, he said: "It is sometimes difficult to be 'the boyfriend of'. I try to support her as much as possible and be a good friend, but she is a better partner."

At the very end, Merckpoel delivers the punchline: "Sorry, I forgot to ask your name?" The five-time Tour de France winner just smiles . Merckpoel called him "the perfect opponent" and said the tone and timing were crucial: "Otherwise it's just cringe. But now I had the perfect opponent."

The 'HAB' T-shirt reveal

What Pogačar didn't know was that Sporza had prepared a custom T-shirt as a surprise prop. The front read "HAB" — short for "Husbands and Boyfriends" — with a blue arrow pointing up and a collage on the back .

Merckpoel admitted they weren't sure how he would react — the shirt would put the focus right back on him — but Pogačar was instantly delighted. He pulled it on immediately, sent a selfie to Žigart, and wore it for the entire rest of the stage, with photos going viral on social media . "First we thought he was just trying to do us a favor, but he had the shirt on the whole stage," Merckpoel said. "I think that's really part of his success. He stands firmly on the ground with both feet."

Merckpoel later called the video one of the highlights of her career . The 'HAB' shirt became an instant collector's item in the cycling world.

Isaac del Toro supporting Romina Hinojosa

Pogačar wasn't the only UAE Team Emirates-XRG star on support-crew duty. Teammate Isaac del Toro — who finished 3rd overall in the men's Tour de France and won the white young rider jersey — was also roadside over the weekend cheering for his partner Romina Hinojosa, a Mexican rider for Lotto-Intermarché .

Hinojosa crossed the finish line in Nice completely exhausted, finishing second-last in the general classification but making history as the first Mexican rider ever to complete the Tour de France Femmes . Del Toro was there on the seafront to welcome her, and the pair later went for pizza together . Sporza captured both UAE stars supporting their partners, noting they were "ploegmaten bij UAE en in de Tour samen op het podium" (teammates at UAE who stood on the podium together at the men's Tour) .

Urška Žigart's resilient performance after a broken jaw

The viral comedy sketch is even more poignant given the context of Žigart's own battle to be on the start line at all.

The crash

On June 18, 2026, during stage 2 of the Tour de Suisse Women, Žigart lost control while navigating a speed bump in the final kilometer, crashed hard, and slid several meters along the pavement . She was rushed to a hospital in Locarno, unconscious, and diagnosed with a fractured jaw . Remarkably, she had no other serious injuries. Team manager Jolien D'hoore later revealed that Žigart was unconscious when she first reached her, describing the moment as "completely in shock" .

The recovery

Because the fracture was a simple break with the sections still aligned, she avoided surgery entirely . She was on a liquid diet for weeks but returned to training within days. Just six weeks later, she was on the start line in Lausanne for the Tour de France Femmes . "I had an angel looking out for me," she said, describing her survival as "miraculous" .

The result

Given that she was still recovering from a broken jaw, on a liquid diet until mid-July, and had almost no competitive buildup, challenging for top results was never realistic. Žigart finished 48th overall and 19th in the final stage into Nice . Along the way, she also battled a stomach illness during stage 3 that dropped her to second-last on the road . Her mere presence, just six weeks after a crash that could have been far worse, was widely seen as a remarkable achievement. Less than two weeks earlier, she had been in Paris celebrating Pogačar's fifth Tour de France victory; now the roles were reversed, with Pogačar putting his Vuelta a España preparation on hold to be her superfan on Mont Ventoux and the Côte d'Azur .

As Merckpoel concluded: "I think that's really part of his success. He stands firmly on the ground with both feet." The same could be said of Žigart.