Pogacar wins convincingly in 'mass sprint' of climbers on Jebel Jais and also takes the leader’s jersey

The third stage of the UAE Tour marked the first real showdown between the general classification contenders, taking place on the slopes of Jebel Jais. This 19-kilometer climb, with an average gradient of 5.6%, is not extremely steep, making a sprint among the climbers for the stage win the most likely scenario. However, previous editions have shown that attacking can also be rewarding. In 2023, Einer Rubio managed to sustain an early attack all the way to the finish. Last year, rocket launcher Decathlon-AG2R’s Ben O’Connor powered his way to victory. Pogacar, however, was hoping for a repeat of 2022, when he triumphed at the summit of Jebel Jais.

Text continues under the X message.

But first, there were still about 170 flat kilometers through the desert to grind away. The key was to stay alert and not doze off at the beginning. Right after the start, a breakaway group formed with a strong Italian presence. Team Solution Tech - Vini Fantini had two riders in the move: Đorđe Đurić and Carlos Samudio. VF Group - Bardiani CSF - Faizanè was even better represented, with three riders: Federico Biagini, Lorenzo Conforti, and Manuele Tarozzi. However, they never got too far ahead, at most gaining around two minutes.

The race rolled along at a steady pace for a long time, with INEOS Grenadiers, UAE Team Emirates-XRG, and Tudor Pro Cycling Team controlling the tempo in the peloton. The breakaway held a lead of a few minutes. With forty kilometers to go, however, harmony in the lead group came to an end. Attacks followed in quick succession, splitting the group into two parts. Despite this, every team managed to keep at least one rider up front. Meanwhile, a fierce battle for points in the intermediate sprints unfolded.

All these developments caused the breakaway’s advantage to grow to around 3:30. However, it quickly began to shrink, and with twenty kilometers to go, at the foot of Jebel Jais, Samudio and Biagini had only about a minute left. With Lotto – the team of defending champion Lennert van Eetvelt – and UAE Team Emirates leading the chase, the peloton entered the final phase of the stage.

Before the climb had even properly started, Einer Rubio was already facing a significant setback. The Movistar climber, who won this stage in 2023, was forced to switch bikes. However, his replacement bike was sitting in the team car without a front wheel, causing a major delay. Meanwhile, Pogacar’s team had already started to pick up the pace at the front. For the breakaway riders, it was over after just a few kilometers on Jebel Jais.

UAE Team Emirates set a high tempo, and their strategy was clear: ride as fast as possible to the summit to prevent attacks. Pogacar had his sights set on a sprint for the victory. For a long time, not much happened. UAE, led by a long pull from Mikkel Bjerg, dictated the pace while everyone else followed. With eight kilometers to go, a large group was still intact.

It all came down to the final kilometers. With four kilometers left, Domen Novak attacked, leaving only Jay Vine and Pogacar from UAE still in contention. Suddenly, Lotto found themselves at the front, but that was not their plan. Instead, Decathlon-AG2R took the initiative. Despite the increasing pace, a sizable group of about 30 riders remained together, including overall leader Joshua Tarling. However, Team Visma | Lease a Bike had already lost Thomas Gloag, who was dropped.

With just under two kilometers to go, the battle for victory began. Felix Gall was the first to launch an attack, and his acceleration proved too much for Tarling, as the Brit could no longer keep up. Gall was quickly reeled back in by Vine, and with a group of about 15 to 20 riders, they entered the final kilometer. Pogacar got exactly what he wanted: a mass sprint among the climbers.

As expected, no one stood a chance against the Slovenian in the sprint. With just a few powerful pedal strokes, Pogacar quickly gained several meters on the competition, and no one was able to close the gap. Onley sprinted to second place, while Gall, despite his earlier attack, still managed to finish third.