Tadej Pogačar was denied the win on his return to WorldTour racing at the GP Québec, but he showed ominous signs of what’s to come as his World Championships preparation ramps up in Canada.
The Slovenian has not raced since taking his third Tour de France victory in July. Pogačar tore into the final laps on the Québec circuit, urging his UAE Emirates teammates to ramp up the pace as he got set to launch a typically unanswerable attack to get the race won.
The attack eventually came, although he took Arnaud De Lie and two other Lotto Dstny riders with him which resulted in the move breaking down. A late surge from the peloton meant that the main field came back to the four riders before Michael Matthews eventually took the victory.
Biniam Girmay came home in second and Groupama FDJ’s Rudy Molard took third.
Pogačar was forced to settle for seventh after being boxed in during the reduced bunch sprint for the line. He admitted that he had hesitated in the finale and should have attacked earlier. Nevertheless, he explained that he was satisfied with his physical shape ahead of the GP Montréal on Sunday and said he felt prepared for the challenge ahead.
"We managed to do a really hard last couple of laps but I was not sure in the last kilometre if I would attack or not, but I made the wrong decision and waited for the sprint," he said. "But I'm super happy to be back, the legs were turning good and I cannot wait for Sunday."
"I was not expecting these good legs to be back," he added. "So I'm super happy with the shape and how I managed the first race after a bit of a rest. I think I'm ready for Sunday and the World Championships now."
Pogačar has won the GP Montréal before in 2022, and this Sunday’s race is likely to be a better form indicator for the Slovenian as he gets set to travel to Zurich for the worlds later this month.
He suggested that he regretted the decision to keep his powder dry until the closing moments in Québec, but said that he would not allow himself to dwell on it as his preparations for a shot at the rainbow bands continue.
"I did not go for a longer attack because I looked back and there was still a gap with one kilometre to go," he explained. "With three guys from Lotto I was thinking we would make it to the finish, but the group was coming from behind really fast and I should have launched it before.
"Maybe I could have stayed away but it is what it is, it was really fun racing and I enjoyed it a lot."
