Florian Vermeersch on Pogačar’s winning move: “I could see straight away he was having a super day”

Aside from that, things did not all go UAE Emirates-XRG’s way. The team had to deal with crashes for Rui Oliveira, Nils Politt — who had already produced a very strong pull before the Molenberg — and Benoît Cosnefroy. Thanks to the work of Bjerg and later Vermeersch, the damage caused by those setbacks was ultimately absorbed.

Speaking in the Sporza studio afterwards, the Belgian explained the plan. “We wanted to do a copy-paste of Omloop. We knew there would be a crosswind on the section leading to the Molenberg, so the key was to be near the front there.”

“The damage done on the Molenberg was a dream scenario. All the strong teams were represented. From that point on, it was simply a matter of keeping it going until the second passage over the Oude Kwaremont,” said Vermeersch.

“At that moment my radio wasn’t working properly, so I only heard once that he had gone clear with Mathieu van der Poel. After that, for me it was a case of finding my way to a top-10 result,” added the Belgian, who eventually finished seventh.

Pogačar built brilliantly on the groundwork laid by his teammate. “As soon as there was hesitation in the front group, he took over on the front. I could just see that he was having a super day.”

“It’s incredible that he still has that extra acceleration every time when everyone else is already on the limit. On paper, this is not even the kind of race that should suit him best, but every time he comes here, and then he still rides everyone off his wheel. It’s unbelievable,” said Vermeersch, who also offered a small insight into UAE’s tactical thinking in the finale against the other contenders.

“Was the plan to make sure Evenepoel didn’t come back? Tadej really did not want Remco to return. On one of those in-between sections he could have ridden away. He’s Olympic champion for a reason. We had to make it as hard as possible for him.”