O'Connor sees himself in Ayuso after "crap" Tour that ended for Pogacar on Col de la Loze: "That's smart"

O'Connor rolled through the first week of the Vuelta, the race in which he won a stage last year and then wore the red leader's jersey for a long time. Only Primoz Roglic (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe) managed to beat him, with O'Connor finishing second on behalf of Jayco-AlUla. In this year's Tour de France, O'Connor wanted to go for a good classification, but he was already on the ground on day 1.

A period of suffering followed, which O'Connor only got through in the third week. And how: on day 18, he joined the breakaway in the toughest mountain stage to the top of the Col de la Loze. Jonas Vingegaard and Tadej Pogacar battled each other, but O'Connor stayed ahead and won in the fog. “The whole Tour de France was actually pretty tough; it was a constant battle every day, so it's nice to be back here in the Vuelta racing in a more straightforward way.”

Most of the GC contenders kept their cards close to their chests in the first week of the Vuelta. Only UAE Team Emirates-XRG was busy every day with stage wins, the mountain jersey, and more... O'Connor respects the way João Almeida's team races. Especially because UAE is now doing what O'Connor did in the Tour. “Why wouldn't someone like Ayuso go for a stage win if he's not interested in the GC and doesn't have the level for it? That's smart, a good idea.”

O'Connor was often in the attack, even when he did have GC ambitions. So that's also a realistic scenario in this Vuelta. “If you're a good rider, you don't always have to ride for the general classification. You can also engage in a fun activity and have a great day. For Almeida, it was also quite easy, but that will change when the days get tougher. If there are two hours of attacking, he's really going to need the UAE guys.”