Jonas Vingegaard poised for biggest gap in Paris-Nice since 1939?

Jonas Vingegaard is currently unbeatable in Paris-Nice. With three stages remaining, the Danish yellow jersey holder has a lead of three minutes and 22 seconds over second-place Daniel Felipe Martínez. It is rare for gaps to be this large in the Race to the Sun. In fact, Vingegaard might just win Paris-Nice with the largest post-war margin.

Matteo Jorgenson won Paris-Nice last year with a one-minute and 15-second lead over Florian Lipowitz. By modern standards, that was already a huge gap, as this century no one had won by more than a minute before (Luis León Sánchez had exactly a one-minute lead over Fränk Schleck in 2009).

Bobet in 1952
The last time the gap was greater than two minutes was in 1980. After seven days of racing, Gilbert Duclos-Lassalle held a margin of three minutes and two seconds over Swiss rider Stefan Mutter. At that time, it was the biggest gap since 1956, when Alfred De Bruyne took the overall win in Paris-Nice. The Belgian had three minutes and 58 seconds over runner-up Pierre Barbotin after five days (and six stages).

For the biggest post-war margin, we need to go back to 1952. Louison needed four minutes and 18 seconds less than Donato Zampini for that edition, noting that the race then consisted of six stages, not eight as it does now.

Before World War II, the gaps were often larger. In 1939, for example, the last pre-war edition, Maurice Archambaud won with a nine-minute and 33-second lead over Frans Bonduel (second) and Gerard Desmet (third), who nevertheless finished with exactly the same time.

Three stages left for Vingegaard
Vingegaard is unlikely to increase his lead by such a margin in the remaining stages of Paris-Nice, but especially in the challenging seventh and eighth stages, he could still extend his advantage. That said, it remains uncertain whether Saturday's queen stage to the ski resort of Auron will take place. Due to snow and wintry conditions, the organizers may have to cancel the stage.

On Sunday, heading to Nice, Vingegaard will have a third opportunity to strike. If the Dane manages to gain another minute on Martínez there, extending his lead to 4'19", could he win with a larger margin than Bobet did in 1952?