Tour of California Tadej Pogacar has the queen’s stage of the Tour of California won. The 20-year-old Slovenian of UAE Emirates overtook it on Mount Baldy for the Colombian, Sergio Higuita (EF Education First). George Bennett (Jumbo-Visma) finished third, five seconds. Tejay van Garderen had to be the favorites, let it ride and loses his leader’s jersey. Pogacar is now the new leader with 16 seconds bonus on Higuita and 20 on Kasper Asgreen (Deceuninck-Quick.Step).
The queen’s stage had three solid passes on the program for the riders, especially the final climb to Mount Baldy to the imagination, did speak, with the finish line at almost 2,000 meters in elevation. The battle for the gc should be supplied, although not that many riders tried to jump away in the early flight.
After a fierce battle managed nine riders managed to drive away from the pack. Owain Doull (Team Ineos), Hugo Houle (Astana), Lennard Hofstede (Jumbo-Visma), Michael Storer (Team Sunweb), Pawel Bernas (CCC Team), Herman Pernsteiner (Bahrain-Merida), Matteo Badilatti (Israel Cycling Academy), Mikkel Bjerg (Hagens Berman Axeon) and Fabio Jakobsen, all would quickly be caught by the peloton.
the pack allowed to have them, not much bonus. The battle for the championship had to be decided and with still 16 miles ahead, remained single Lennard Hofstede, Pawel Bernas, Matteo Fabbro and Hugo Houle (Astana) with one minute bonus.
EF Education First’s leader Tejay van Garderen, and also Pull-Segafredo, for Richie Porte, took over the reins uphill and the group dunde. Maximilian Schachmann (Bora-hansgrohe) wanted the final climb not to wait and pulled at 14 kilometers from the end in the attack. The German made a fast crossing to the front runners and left them behind soon. Virtual he drove even in the yellow, but he would not until the end uitzingen. In the peloton, with favorites went first to the light in Gianni Moscon, surprisingly enough, was then the leader himself, who at 4.2 km from the end, had to unload. Team mate Rigoberto Uran was him for a moment, but the American fell drastically and the battle for the yellow jersey burst is not fast then release.
First launched George Bennett, the winner in 2017, at 3.9 kilometers, but soon locks Sergio Higuita, Tadej Pogacar, and Richie Porte, at 3.5 km was Schachmann there for the effort. Pogacar accelerated to 3.4 km, only Higuita had a response in the legs and would then even pull away when the Go in Bennet, an ally to be found after the sore to close. In the meantime, got Porte to deal with faulty material and he would not have any role to play anymore in the front. The battle was between Pogacar, Higuita and Bennett, but the New Zealander could be a demarrage of the Colombian’t answer, Pogacar clung in the wheel and the duo drove together to the meet. Bennett would still close, but it was Pogacar that with a clever maneuver in the turn to the victory and the yellow jersey sprinted.
In the rankings is Pogacar now leader with 16 seconds ahead of Higuita. Asgreen is third at 20 seconds with only the stage on today on the menu.
