He would have almost had time to drink a glass of Chianti before crossing the finish line in Siena. Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates) won the Strade Bianche hands down in 4h47’49”, on Saturday March 5. He was 37 seconds ahead of his runner-up Alejandro Valverde. As so often, the Slovenian unleashed a surgical attack which left marble his rivals, to win alone.After his victory in the Tour of the United Arab Emirates at the end of February, the 23-year-old rider confirms his astonishing start to the season.
OUI BIEN SUR!!!
@TamauPogi takes a magnificent solo victory at #StradeBianche !#UAETeamEmirates #WeAreUAE pic.twitter.com/52dd7mnkds
— @UAE-TeamEmirates (@TeamEmiratesUAE) March 5, 2022
With him, it’s always the same song. “50 kilometers, isn’t it a bit early to attack?”, we repeat tirelessly when “Pogi” picks up the pace alone. These doubts, the Slovenian does not care. Intractable, he first advanced masked, before squandering the suspense in two stages. His first attack at the front of the peloton warned his opponents, but a panel of pursuers, including Julian Alaphilippe, caught up with the double Tour winner.
It was enough to excite the wonder of Komenda. His second acceleration stunned all of his rivals, reminding if necessary of his status as an ogre. Carlos Rodriguez tried to hang on to his wheel, but there was a world between Pogacar and the rest of the world. In the absence of Wout Van Aert and Mathieu van der Poel, the last two winners, no one was able to compete with him.
This victory adds a little more to an already extensive record. Double winner of the Tour de France, the Slovenian had won two monuments in 2021, the Tour of Lombardy and Liège-Bastogne-Liège. By gleaning a new classic, Tadej Pogacar ideally prepares Tirreno Adriatico, which starts on Monday and of which he holds the title.
At the end of a trying race, Julian Alaphilippe, winner in 2019, hardly weighed. Caught in a pile-up 100 kilometers from the finish, the double world champion had all the trouble in the world to get back to the peloton. It is an understatement to say that the energy left on the road in this adventure failed him to counter Pogacar.
Quick-Step was not mistaken there, since the Belgian team fell back on Kasper Asgreen over the course of the race. In the case, Patrick Lefevere was right. Escaped 20 kilometers from Siena, the Dane believed for a long time in second place. Alas, the 41 springs of old veteran Alejandro Valverde beat him to the post. After an intense race, the Hungarian Attila Valter (Groupama-FDJ) finished fourth.