Another exhibition and quite a lot of the early cycling season. the slovenian Tadej Pogacaras if from another planet, won his first Fleche Wallonne this wednesday at the top of Wall of Huy to take another step towards perfection in the Ardennes races.
Having already won the Amstel Gold Race on Sunday, the UAE Emirates rider beat the Danish Skjelmose Jensen and the Spanish Michael Landa at the finish line after his team’s demarcation about 100 meters from the banner.
Pogacar won the 87th edition of this Belgian classic held on the 194.3 km route between Herve and the Mur d’Huy.
The 24-year-old Slovenian attacked from 100 meters and did not give his rivals a chance. He raised his arms in a time of 4h.27.53, at an average of 43.5 km/hour.
Second place went to Danish Trek’s Segafredo Mattias Skjelmose and third to Spanish Mikel Landa (Bahrain Victorious).
The prediction came true with a poor Pogacar, on a roll, ready to sign the treble next Sunday in ‘Liège’. On the Mur d’Huy, the double Tour winner climbed like no one else, barely standing, and clearly won his first Fleche Wallonne, the only thing he lacked from the Ardennes classics.
King Pogacar, who has 12 victories this season, raised his arms to the sky at the top of Huy. His rivals crossed at the same time, a few meters apart, with the Dane Mattias Skjelmose (Trek) and Mikel Landa (Bahrain) following.
Another podium for Spanish cycling in a finish where Alejandro Valverde has already been crowned five times, and an Igor Astarloa, Purito Rodríguez and Dani Moreno.
“It was great to finish third, but the defeat against Pogacar was different, it was on another level and his team was controlled very well all the time. On Sunday the presence of Evenepoel could change things, and with the misunderstanding with Pogacar can take advantage of it,” said the player from Alava to Eurosport’s microphones at the finish line.
The Walloon Arrow has its usual script, and everything happens and is decided on the 1,300 meter ascent of the Muro de Huy with an average percentage of 9 percent and final ramps of 15. With the UAE controlling the whole day with the unique mission of escorting Pogacar to glory, the real race begins at the Wall, with the favorites on stage. There was no way to dethrone Pogacar, who accelerated 100 meters from the finish with little response from his foes, resigned to fighting for second place. The Slovenian, who has 56 victories in his career, has overtaken Belgian Dylan Teuns on the list of winners.
Source: La Verdad
I’m Robert Maynard, and I am a passionate journalist with experience in sports writing. For the last few years, I have been writing for Today Times Live. My main focus has been on sports-related stories and features. With my strong background in journalism and extensive knowledge of the industry, I am able to provide readers with well-crafted pieces that are both informative and engaging.
