Who expected anything different? Pogacar secures victory on Jebel Hafeet and wins UAE Tour for third time

The stage to Jebel Hafeet traditionally serves as the queen stage of the multi-day race in the United Arab Emirates. After a flat start, the road averages 6.7 percent over the last 11 kilometers. Normally, it is a leisurely stage until the foot of the last climb, but as was often the case this week, the opening phase was nervous. There were many attacks, and the wind could have played a factor.

Even before there was any chance of crosswinds, several riders were lying on the ground. An unprotected median strip was the culprit, and the riders hit the pavement face-first. White jersey wearer Josh Tarling had to recover from a big crash, but for others, it ended worse. Chris Froome (Israel—Premier Tech) and Niklas Behrens (Visma | Lease a Bike) immediately reached for their shoulders, where a broken collarbone may have resulted. Arvid de Kleijn (Tudor Pro Cycling) was also unable to continue.

After that nasty accident, the peloton was faced with strong crosswinds. Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe, Jayco-AlUla, and Soudal Quick-Step saw their chance and tore the peloton apart. About thirty riders managed to slip away, including Tadej Pogacar. Riders who were not among them: Jay Vine (UAE Team Emirates - XRG) and last year's winner Lennert Van Eetvelt (Lotto) failed to hold on, as did the entire Visma | Lease a Bike team. The front group rode hard, and the gap grew steadily.

The early breakaway, which included Jonathan Milan and Alexey Lutsenko, was quickly caught. With 70 kilometers to go, the gap was already two minutes. In the run-up to the famous final climb, that lead only increased, so the first group arrived at the foot of Jebel Hafeet with a lead of three minutes. Without Vine and Domen Novak, Pogacar had to tackle most of the climb alone.

The Slovenian GC leader let his Belgian teammates Florian Vermeersch and Rune Herregodts work on the lower slopes of the final climb. They quickly reduced the group to about twenty riders. Tarling could not keep up on the steep sections, and the crash undoubtedly did him no good. When Herregodts had done his work with 8 kilometers to go, Pogacar immediately attacked.

The world champion raced off, but Oscar Onley and Giulio Ciccone were able to follow for a while. However, the pace was too high for them, so Pogi steadily extended his lead. The headwind on the steep sections did not bother him. Behind him, Ciccone pulled away from his fellow Scottish competitor, who Pello Bilbao and Iván Romeo caught. The former then accelerated and caught the Italian pursuer. Pogacar, however, was out of sight. Ciccone subsequently won second place in the sprint.