Pogacar eyes ‘one of the biggest mountain stages ever’ after Suisse time trial triumph
Tadej Pogačar was pushed closer than anticipated by Mathieu van der Poel but the world champion still found a way to win in the stage 4 time trial of the Tour de Suisse in Aarburg. Now his thoughts turn to the final test, a tough moutain stage over the Col de Croix.
The technical finale to the 23.7km test perhaps lent itself to Van der Poel’s dextrous bike handling skills, but Pogačar retained just enough speed to fend off the Dutchman and the day’s honours by 0.31 seconds.
Speaking after he had warmed down near the podium area, Pogačar admitted that he had been flying blind in the closing moments of this stage. He knew he had the quickest time after 10km, a fraction ahead of Mathias Vacek and 5 seconds up on Van der Poel, but he wasn’t sure of what he needed to do in the final kilometre.
No matter, it was enough. Pogačar scorched around the course at 53.392kph to deny Van der Poel and claim his second stage win of the week and his 11th victory of the season.
“It was really, really hot out there and a really fast parcours. I felt great, I had good legs,” Pogačar said. “I didn’t know that I was fighting for the win, I just wanted to give it my all.
“I knew I was close, but after the intermediate point, I didn't know any more times, so I was just trying to go all out to the finish. I managed to do it well and I'm super happy to take the win.”
One of the biggest mountain stages ever
The stage offered Pogačar a chance to bank some competitive miles on his new time trial bike ahead of the Tour de France, where he faces a test of similar distance on stage 16 at Thonon-les-Bains.
“It’s really good news today that I felt really good on the TT bike, I can take a lot of confidence from today for the future,” Pogačar told CyclingPro.net.
In the here and now, the stage saw Pogačar put the Tour de Suisse even further beyond the reach of his rivals after his crushing 69km solo win on the opening day. Pogačar caught and passed his one-minute man Richard Carapaz barely halfway into his effort, and he now carries a lead of 4:22 over the Ecuadorian into Sunday’s demanding final stage.
“It’s a great race,” Pogačar said of his Tour de Suisse debut. “I’m happy to take the second win and tomorrow, the last day, we fight for another one.”
The Tour de Suisse has been scaled back to just five stages this year, meaning that Sunday’s finale around Villars-sur-Ollon is the only full-blown mountain day on the course. The stage takes in three ascents of the Col de la Croix, and Pogačar will look to test himself further ahead of the main event in July.
“It’s a brutal stage, I think, completely different than what we had the last few day,” Pogačar said. “I’m really looking really forward to seeing the legs in the mountains, how they are.
“Today was a flat TT. Tomorrow is one of the biggest mountain stages ever. I’m really excited to see where I am.”
We already have an idea.
Result: Tour de Suisse stage 4
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