The Dutch Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin Deceuninck) will make his season debut this Saturday at a monument like Milan San Remowhere he will defend the title he won in 2023 against Slovenian Tadej Pogacar, who showed no fear after his exhibition at the Strade Bianche.
Although he had never previously competed in a stage test to prepare for the event, he came from the high concentration of the team’s high altitude ready to show “that you can win at San Remo without the rhythm of the competition.”
“I have no doubt, you can compete well without leg competitions. He is hoping to have the same good legs as last year. I am very happy with the preparation.. The ideal would be to run a stage race for San Remo, but last year it was a bit of a rush to get to Strade Bianche,” said the World Champion calmly and convincingly.
Van der Poel emphasized that he can run well even without competition. “Although I think I can do more. But if I could win one monument without rhythm, it would be Milan-San Remo“, accurate.
The Dutch phenomenon, also a 6-time cyclocross World champion, made a reference to the Slovenian Tadej Pogacar, his great rival, who arrived in San Remo after a historic performance in the Strade Bianche.
“He was impressed again, but I wasn’t scared. It was a penalty, but it didn’t surprise me. We all know what he is capable of. It doesn’t compare to Saturday’s race. “He is the favourite, as in all the races he takes part in,” said Van der Poel.
The Alpecin leader believes that Milan-San Remo cannot be won as easily as the Strade Bianche, and “there is less surprise in a solo getaway”.
“I went back to explore the Cipressa and Poggio descents, which are key, of course not at full speed, because then you quickly get into trouble with traffic,” he commented.
Source: La Verdad
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