Pogacar hails Narváez victory as UAE plan pays off at Tour de Suisse

Narváez escaped alongside Xandro Meurisse with more than 100 kilometres remaining and the pair managed to stay clear of a rapidly approaching peloton in Bad Ragaz. Narváez comfortably won the sprint between the two leaders, while Pogačar finished safely in the bunch and retained the overall lead.

For Pogačar, the victory was the result of a plan that UAE had discussed before the stage.

“The plan was to get someone in the breakaway,” Pogačar said after the finish to CyclingPro.net. “First it was Felix and Jonny in the break, and then it was only Jonny with Meurisse.”

Narváez and Meurisse built an advantage of more than four minutes before seeing their lead fall quickly during the wet and frantic closing kilometres. Despite the speed of the chase behind, they continued to work together and reached the final kilometre with enough of an advantage to contest the victory.

“They were really motoring away,” Pogačar said. “It was a flying stage and it was really fast. Chapeau to Jonny and Meurisse for keeping it in front today.”

The stage victory continued Narváez’s impressive run of form and gave UAE another success at a race already controlled by Pogačar. The Slovenian said there was a sense of collective satisfaction within the team after watching his teammate finish off the move.

“I was super happy,” he said. “We are all happy for Jonny.”

Attention now turns to the individual time trial, the first major test of Pogačar’s position at the top of the general classification. Although the course will differ from the time trials he will face at the Tour de France, it will provide an opportunity to assess his form and equipment under race conditions.

Despite the work he has done on his time trial bike, Pogačar was reluctant to set firm expectations.

“I don’t know what to expect,” he said. “It is the first proper time trial for me this year. It will be fun to test the legs, the sensations and everything else.”

Far from viewing the discipline as an obligation, Pogačar said he was looking forward to the change of rhythm after three days of road racing in Switzerland.

“I am looking forward to tomorrow,” he said. “It is always a nice day when it is a time trial.”