“We will not let Enric Mas catch us twice”, they must have thought at UAE Team Emirates.
3 days ago, the number 2 of the Vuelta put Tadej Pogacar over his knee in the Tour of Emilië.
Today UAE wanted to squeeze Team Emirates Mas in the final. Diego Ulissi threw the bat into the henhouse at 14 kilometers from the finish line and lured Mas out of his room.
Pogacar stuck to the wheel of the Spaniard, a dream scenario for UAE. But in the front everything flowed together again.
When the young British Thomas Gloag (Jumbo-Visma) moused away, it was Mas himself who put pressure on UAE by sliding along. Under the impulse of Pogacar, they were called to order.
After a jab from the departing Nibali, Mas went on again in the final kilometer. It was impossible to get away. In the sprint Tadej Pogacar got his gram.
“It was a very tough race, but at the end it turned out to be a sprint”, Pogacar looked back on his victory.
“The team did a really good job in the final to keep the group together. Especially Diego Ulissi.”
“It is always better if you can go to the finish alone, but today it was a very strong field, so in the final it turned out to be better to wait for the sprint.”
Pogacar let slip last week that he will ride better this fall than last year, but he still thinks it will be more difficult to win again in the Tour of Lombardy.
“I think more riders will look at me on Saturday, so it will be very difficult to attack alone.”
“It will be a very long and tough race, so anything can happen at the end. Saturday will be a great race anyway.”
