'I can't believe it' - Langellotti surprises with Poland power play

You didn’t need to consult the FirstCycling database to realise that winning WorldTour races was an entirely new experience for Victor Langellotti. Seasoned winners at this level know the drill. They ghost through the finish area towards the sanctuary of the podium before attending to their media duties. 

Langellotti, by contrast, simply rolled disbelievingly to a halt in the middle of the road, as though unsure of what to do next. When a local TV crew gathered around him, the Monaco native’s natural courtesy kicked in. Protocol be damned, he smilingly talked them through his victory on stage 6 of the Tour de Pologne.

“It’s my first time in Poland and my first win, I’m very happy,” Langellotti said, before a chaperone arrived to usher him towards the podium area half a kilometre or so down the road. “I still can’t believe it.”

Langellotti’s entire day had been built around the final half kilometre of the stage, which brought the Tour de Pologne through the Tatra Mountains to a familiar uphill finale at Bukowina Tatrzańska. The 147km stage featured no fewer than six category 1 ascents, and the finale saw a flurry of attacks and counter-attacks, but Langellotti resisted the temptation to follow.

Brandon McNulty (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) was a persistent attacker, and he looked a likely winner when he led alone into those final 500 metres, but he hadn’t reckoned with Langellotti. Monaco’s first-ever WorldTour pro produced a striking sparata to rip clear of the chasing group before catching and passing McNulty to claim stage victory and the yellow jersey of race leader.

“I knew that I had to wait until at least the last 500 metres, that was my strength,” Langellotti said.

“The idea was to wait, because I knew the last climb suited me pretty well. I really wanted to wait, to keep calm and to keep as much energy as possible to make the difference in the last kick. Obviously, the guys tried, they attacked, and it was a big fight. But everybody was on the limit today, so it’s been very hard for all the bunch, I think.”

Langellotti had showcased his ability in an uphill sprint on stage 2 to Karpacz, and afterwards, Michal Kwiatkowski indicated that his Ineos teammate had, by his reckoning, one of the most impressive one-minute power outputs he had ever seen. The Monegasque smiled when asked if it was true.

“Probably – if Kwiatko says that, well, he knows cycling more than I do,” Langellotti said. “It’s one of my strengths and sharing a team with a guy like Kwiatko, you learn so much from him day by day. I’m super happy to be part of the team and to be able to ride with him.”

Langellotti had to ride without the former world champion and Magnus Sheffield on Saturday, with both of Ineos’ pre-race leaders forced out by illness. That meant the squad’s hopes here were placed squarely on the shoulders on Langellotti, but he deemed the responsibility to be an inspiration rather than a burden.

“When you see all the guys are giving their best and sacrificing their race for you, it gives you a boost in confidence and energy,” he said. “Even today, on some climbs I had tough moments, but they were always by my side and helping me, so it gives an extra boost. When the team gives the best for you, you can’t let them down.”

Langellotti’s victory sees him carry the yellow jersey into the final time trial with a lead of seven seconds over McNulty. All logic says that McNulty should comfortably overturn that deficit in the 12.5km test against a rider with no standout displays against the watch to his name. Then again, few could have imagined that Langellotti would be in the mix on this Tour de Pologne. His ceiling has clearly shifted during this, his first season in the WorldTour.

Last winter, Langellotti was a most surprising signing for Ineos, making the step up to the top flight after seven years with Burgos-BH and few standout results save for stage wins at the Volta a Portugal and Tour of Turkey.

The 30-year-old acknowledged that his first WorldTour season had been a “learning experience,” but he started getting up to speed at May’s Tour of Norway, where he placed second overall. Winning against a field like this in Poland, however, was beyond all expectations. It remains to be seen if he can pull off the ultimate upset.

“We’ll see what happens tomorrow,” he said. “It’s going to be a big challenge, obviously. I’m positive, I’m going to give my best and we’ll see the result. Honestly, if last week you’d told me I’d be wearing the yellow jersey one stage from the end, I probably wouldn’t have believed it.”