Tadej Pogačar played down his role of super favourite for Milan-San Remo, and played down his chances of victory, all while refusing to reveal his cards and UAE Team Emirates-XRG race strategy at Friday’s team presentation in Pavia.
Pogačar and UAE were the last on stage at the men’s presentation and naturally got the biggest cheers from the Italian crowd.
Pogačar still has some road rash and even open wounds but seemed ready to race, two weeks after his crash and victory at Strade Bianche.
“I still have some open wounds but I’m feeling OK. Nothing bothers me on the bike,” he admitted, carefully wrapped up against the cold that should follow Milan-San Remo all day on Saturday.
“The first few days were pretty rough, but since then I did some really good training, did some nice recons, and came here with the team. There’s a good atmosphere and I’m super prepared and ready to race.”
Each rider who passed through the packed and chaotic media mixed zone at the team presentation was asked: “What will Pogačar do?”
Pogačar was asked too but jokingly stayed evasive. “To win you have to cross the finish line first…” he said.
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“To win you have to be the best, it’s as simple as that. In truth, it’s a tough one to crack. You need to have some luck, you need to be prepared, concentrated, have the power, you need to have the team around you. Everything needs to go perfectly.
“Anything can be possible but you never know what will happen in this race. So many details count in tactics. We can talk about where you can attack, or what you can do, but you never know. Any small, small detail during the day can change everything in the race.”
Pogačar will again be a marked man during the 289km ride to San Remo, the rainbow jersey making him stand out in the peloton. His rivals know they can not let him get away on the Cipressa, and especially on the Poggio, and can only hope to beat him in a sprint in the Via Roma finish.
Pogačar can win any race he targets but Milan-San Remo is probably the most difficult for him to win. His claim that he was not a favourite is almost justified.
“I don’t think we’re the favourites. It’s a race we target but we’re outsiders but we’re not the main favourites. We’ve not won this race yet…” he said ominously, victory at Milan-San Remo surely a case of when, not if.
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