Tadej Pogačar returned residence from his victory at Liège-Bastogne-Liège to spend his countdown to the beginning of the Giro d’Italia in Monte Carlo slightly than at altitude, satisfied that he has achieved the coaching and reconnaissance wanted to efficiently goal the maglia rosa in May.
“I hope that I’m in fine condition however I believe I can nonetheless be a little bit higher however not rather a lot,” Pogačar mentioned earlier than returning residence, once more automotive sharing the drive residence together with his companion Urška Žigart and Montecarlo neighbours Michael Matthews and Davide Formolo, in line with La Gazzetta dello Sport.
Pogačar is making his Giro d’Italia debut and racing onerous in May for the primary time in his profession. It can be the primary time he’ll experience two Grand Tours in the identical season as he targets the Giro-Tour double.
The 25-year-old Slovenian has solely raced for ten days to date in 2024, however gained seven instances together with Strade Bianche, Liège-Bastogne-Liège, 4 phases on the Volta a Catalunya and the general classification. Pogačar has ridden 5 Grand Tours, ending third on his debut on the 2019 Vuelta a España. He then gained the Tour de France in 2020 and 2021 and completed second to Jonas Vingegaard in 2022 and 2023.
By profitable Liège-Bastogne-Liège, Pogačar has 70 victories on his palmares and has already gained six monument Classics, with solely a sure Eddy Merckx doing the identical at a youthful age.
“When you’re the primary ranked rider on the planet, it’s not simple to enhance on that however I believe we’re seeing the all-time Tadej Pogačar in each attainable means,” UAE Team Emirates sport supervisor Joxean Fernandez Matxin instructed La Gazzetta dello Sport.
Pogačar and his UAE Team Emirates teammates are anticipated to reach in Turin for the Giro d’Italia Grande Partenza subsequent Wednesday, giving the riders two days for any last coaching and renaissance. The official group presentation can be held on Thursday night on the Castello del Valentino on the banks of the river Po.
UAE Team Emirates have nonetheless to call their last eight-rider Giro d’Italia group however Rafal Majka, Felix Grossschartner, Mikkel Bjerg, Juan Sebastian Molano, Rui Oliveira and Domen Novak are prone to be chosen. Vegard Stake Laengen is predicted to interchange Jan Vine within the group after the Australian’s crash at Itzulia Basque Country.
Pogačar, like a lot of his total rivals, has already studied a lot of key phases, together with stage 6 to Rapolano Terme which incorporates a number of gravel sectors on the Tuscany roads, the important thing time trials, the mountain stage to Livigno excessive within the Alps. He noticed the Prati di Tivo mountain end whereas profitable a stage of Tirreno-Adriatico in 2021.
The 107th Giro d’Italia begins on Saturday May 4 with a 140 km highway race stage that begins on the Venaria Reale palace exterior the town and ends in central Turin after climbing the Superga and the Colle Maddalena earlier than a quick descent to the end on the banks of the Po.
Stage 2 finishes on the Oropa Sanctuary and would be the earliest main mountain end on the Giro d’Italia for the reason that race started in Sicily in 1989 and climbed Mount Etna.
The Oropa end marks the twenty fifth anniversary of Marco Pantani’s well-known victory on the climb to the sanctuary in 1999, when he dropped his chain on the foot of the climb however blasted previous all his rivals. The Oropa climb isn’t lengthy or steep at 11.8km and 6.2% however Tom Dumoulin distanced his rivals again in 2017 and Pogačar might attempt to win the stage and take the race chief’s maglia rosa.
“You can’t maintain again that day, a stage like that designs the GC standings and so the general contenders can’t conceal,” UAE Team Emirates group supervisor Mauro Gianetti instructed La Gazzetta dello Sport.
If Pogačar takes the maglia rosa on stage 2, it might create the narrative for the remainder of the Giro d’Italia, with the Slovenian dominating the race all the way in which to Rome.
“The maglia rosa is the maglia rosa, should you let it go, you then need to get it again,” Gianetti mentioned, hinting at UAE Team Emirates’ race technique.
