After surviving the chaos and crashes of one of the most hectic Opening Weekends of recent years, Matej Mohorič says that while compatriot Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) is the standout favourite for the upcoming Strade Bianche, the roads of Tuscany will likely give him a better chance to shine than Omloop Het Nieuwsblad and Kuurne-Brussel-Kuurne.
Eighth in the Clásica Jaén, whose off-road sections have a lot more in common than the cobbles and hills of Flanders, in early February was already one promising result for the Bahrain Victorious co-leader.
Former gravel World Champion and teammate Pello Bilbao, like Mohorič, a former top-five finisher in Italy, will head up the Bahrain formation. Another interesting option for the Middle Eastern squad will be Attila Valter, who brings both top-10 finishes in Siena and a mountain biking background to the race.
But while Mohorič, like everybody else, is fully expecting the usual long-distance Pogačar assault on the sterrato, he also thinks this year’s reduction in the gravel sectors in the race, by 16 kilometres compared to 2025 to 64.1 kilometres, may well change Saturday’s overall dynamic.
“It should do,” Mohorič told Cyclingnews earlier this week. “OK, probably UAE will try to adjust and make it harder from the start, but anyhow, it will allow more riders to still be involved towards the finale.
As for Mohorič himself, he knows Strade Bianche suits him, even if the presence of Pogačar can’t be ignored when it comes to team strategy.
“Of course, having riders like Pogačar on the startlist changes things. I think they [UAE] will make the race as difficult as they possibly can so they can have him launch from far out,” he said.
While Strade can appear to be just as chaotic and fraught as Opening Weekend, Mohorič said the very different nature of the terrain makes it, as he succinctly put it, “a lot more about pure power and a bit less about elbows.”
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