Pogačar begins Vuelta in perfect fashion
On his adopted home roads of Monaco, Tadej Pogačar began the Vuelta a España in perfect fashion by winning stage 1 by less than a second. Pipping Ethan Hayter (Soudal Quick-Step) to the day’s victory by just 0.09 seconds, the UAE Team Emirates-XRG man takes the red race leader’s jersey for the first time in his career.
As the penultimate rider down the start ramp, all eyes were on Pogačar on Saturday evening, with the Slovenian making his first appearance at the Vuelta since 2019. The reigning two-time world champion would not disappoint.
Powering along the 9.4km-long course, Pogačar was two seconds down on Hayter at the intermediate time split, but upped his pace in the second half of the route. By the finish, it was a tense encounter as the seconds ticked by. Hayter, who had recently removed Josh Tarling (Netcompany INEOS) from the hot seat, could be proud of his efforts, but was forced to settle for second place.
As for Pogačar, the UAE Team Emirates-XRG rider put all of his local knowledge to great use across an incredibly technical course. Ramping up his effort through the back straight, the five-time Tour de France champion narrowly edged out Hayter and claimed his fourth career Vuelta stage win.
For the 27-year-old, it is his 36th Grand Tour stage victory, adding to the six Giro d’Italia and 26 Tour de France stage wins in his illustrious palmarès. Returning to the Vuelta for the first time since his third-place finish as a Grand Tour rookie in 2019, the Slovenian tops the general classification after the first day of racing.
Elsewhere, UAE Team Emirates-XRG made a strong showing across the board in Monaco, with Jay Vine, Ivo Oliveira, and João Almeida all finishing inside the top 20 in the stage 1 ITT.
Pogačar: “It’s a weird feeling to win the opening time trial by such a small margin. I was not expecting it. And this red is a really nice colour. For sure, I think I gained that 0.09 seconds when we passed in front of my apartment, because that was the most technical part of the course. I walk and cycle there every day. Even though it’s completely different in a race, knowing these roads super well helped me a lot today.
“When I was going to the start line, I saw that Josh [Tarling] had the best time. I really wanted him to win today, I was rooting for him. Then I came to the intermediate, and I heard a different name, it was Ethan Hayter in front of me by three seconds. I gave it all, without taking risks. And I would really like to see Josh perform well in this Vuelta.
“[Keeping the Red Jersey for three weeks] is going to be tough. Already tomorrow, some guys can break away or take it with bonus seconds. It’s going to be tight for the Red Jersey, and we can see some shuffling in the GC.”
Prologue
- Tadej Pogacar (UAE Emirates XRG) 10’57”
- Ethan Hayter (Soudal Quick-Step) +0’00”
- Josh Tarling (Netcompany Ineeos) +0’04”
GC
- Tadej Pogacar (UAE Emirates XRG) 10’57”
- Ethan Hayter (Soudal Quick-Step) +0’00”
- Josh Tarling (Netcompany Ineeos) +0’04”
