As usual: Tadej Pogacar wins the Tour of Emilia for his first race as world champion

Tadej Pogacar was still alone in the world. This Saturday, the Slovenian (UAE Team Emirates) won, solo and with almost two minutes in advance, the 107th edition of the Tour of Emilia between Vignola and San Luca. At the finish, the world champion beat the Briton Tom Pidcock (Ineos Grenadiers) and the Italian Davide Piganzoli (Team Polti Kometa). On the list, Pogacar succeeds his compatriot Primoz Roglic (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe), also crowned in 2019 and 2021.

We didn’t have to wait more than ten kilometers before witnessing the first attacks, in the rain. At 198 kilometers from the finish, a leading group was formed, with six riders: the Frenchman Benjamin Thomas (Cofidis), the Belgian Dimitri Peyskens (Bingoal WB), the Panamanian Roberto Carlos Gonzalez (Corratec-Vini Fantini), the Spaniard Ander Ganzabal (Euskatel-Euskadi), the Italian Alessio Martinelli (VF Group – Bardiani CSF – Faizanè) and the Mexican José Ramon Muniz (Petrolike). Their lead reached 6’36”. Before Pogacar’s UAE Emirates launches the first stage of the rocket.

At the head of the peloton, the Slovenian team took matters into their own hands, then replaced by Ineos Grenadiers, EF Education – EasyPost, Bahrain – Victorious and Soudal Quick-Step. Thomas, Ganzabal and Martinelli, the last three riders remaining from the morning breakaway, were caught 47 kilometers from the finish, before the start of the major maneuvers.

From the start of the climb of San Luca (2.1 km at 9.6%), the Belgian Remco Evenepoel (Soudal Quick-Step) accelerated, followed, in particular, by the Slovenian Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates ). After a counter from an Astana runner, Pogacar left alone, around 38 kilometers from the line. The American Matteo Jorgenson (Visma-Lease a Bike) tried to follow, before very quickly realizing the obvious.

Pogacar alone led the five climbs of San Luca, in a 9.2 kilometer circuit, increasing his lead beyond 2′ over Florian Lipowitz (Red-Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe). The force of habit, like at the Worlds a week earlier, or at the Strade Bianche earlier in the season.

Lipovitz was never able to nibble, before being caught in the last kilometer. The peloton had, for its part, exploded and Evenepoel even abandoned his first race since the fourth stage of the Tour of the Basque Country, last April. Second in 2022 then in 2023, Pogacar adds his name to the list of winners in a new race. The Slovenian pockets his 24th victory of the season, the 87th of his immense career.