Tadej Pogačar Wins 2nd Stage in a Row at Giro – Calls for More Aggression from Top Players

“The top players should be more aggressive,” said Tadej Pogačar (Slovakia, Emirates Team UAE), who won for the second day in a row. Here are the comments of the players who finished the 8th stage of the Giro, among Tiberi, who showed his sharp attacks, and Martinez, who finished in second place.
Category winner & Maria Rosa Tadej Pogačar (Slovakia, Emirates Team UAE)

Tadej Pogačar (Slovakia, Emirates Team UAE) won for the second day in a row photo: CorVos
Post race interview

I didn’t expect to win today. However, the team set a great pace from the start and were able to enter the final mountain with a good time difference. The team’s run from there was fantastic, and Rafau’s (Micah) leadership was fantastic as well. I’m really happy to win here again.

Climbing (level 2) was the first category I focused on. Mikkel (Björg), who was one time behind, joined the group and from there he joined the chase. From the bottom of the last mountain, we were confident of winning with Domen (Novak), Felix (Grosshartner) and Rafau (Mica) leading us.

In the final sprint, I was worried about the presence of Martinez, who has shown good finishes this year. I thought there would be an attack before then, and Tiberi showed a good attack. But we were able to control these developments and Rafau’s run helped us.

Tadej Pogačar (Slovakia, Emirates Team UAE) extends Maria Rosa’s lead by adding bonus time photo: CorVos
Interview after the awards ceremony

Today, the driving of ​​Mikkel and Rui (Oliveira), who led us in the early stages, and the driving of Morano gave us a lot of motivation to aim for victory. The team worked hard for me, and I wanted to reward them with a win. I’m really proud to win it.

In addition, Rafau was coming from an Achilles tendon injury, and his position for this competition was not clear. However, on the last mountain he showed the performance that everyone expected.

The 3 wins in the category so far are more than I expected. Other major players should be more proactive. I hope that the good attack that Tiberi showed today will be an inspiration to the other general riders.

2nd place in category & 2nd place overall: Daniel Martinez (Colombia, Bora-Hansgrohe)

Daniel Martinez (Colombia, Bora-Hansgrohe) lost in the sprint photo: BORA – hansgrohe
Coming into this tough stage second overall, Pogacar was expected to show his strength here as well. I would like to thank the team for setting a good pace. I was still watching Pogacar’s movements when the attack on the last mountain happened. Then, with less than 2km left, I started thinking about winning the stage.

Pogačar was strong, and even when he pushed past his limits, he didn’t look like him. But I’m happy with my run and my first rest day will come shortly after this. The hardest stage of the Giro is yet to come.

Antonio Tiberi (Italy, Bahrain Victorious) showed an aggressive attack on the last mountain.

The climbing battle begins with an attack from Antonio Tiberi (Italy, Bahrain Victorious) photo: CorVos
It was an advanced stage. Although I could not be in the top three, I was very satisfied with the result, as I was able to improve my running in the hills, my mechanics, the feeling of my legs, and my overall ranking. It has been attacked several times, which is proof that it is in good condition. Although I still have a long way to go, I was able to show what I need to do.

5th Division & 3rd Overall: Geraint Thomas (England, Ineos Grenadiers)

It was a good development with Magnus (Sheffield) and Jonathan (Narvaez) riding the track. However, UAE set a fast pace on the climbs, and it was clear that they were aiming for a stage win, although I don’t know if it was from the start.

I felt much better than the day before, and today I focused on running defensively. I was surprised at how good I felt at the end. The players around me were falling behind one after another. However, he did not have the legs to compete in sprints.

Luke Plapp (Australia, Jayco Al-Ula) was eliminated from the overall competition.

It was a very difficult level. Hopefully I can get back in shape with a rest day.

text: Sotaro.Arakawa
photo: CorVos