A closer look: UAE Tour. First World Tour race of the year, phenomenal sprinter field and Pogacar to try and defend title

From February 20th to 26th, cycling enthusiasts can expect daily excitement on their screens as the peloton converges for the final race of the Middle East micro-block: the UAE Tour. As the first stage race of the season, it features a series of sprint stages that attract an impressive array of riders, along with a fiercely contested general classification battle that is sure to provide plenty of spectacle.

The race will features four pan-flat stages on stages one, two, five and six finishing in Madina Zayed, Abu Dhabi Breakwater, Al Marjan Island and Expo 2020 Dubai. These will be days where crosswinds can completely break apart the peloton as they are absent of any kind of climb and are mostly in very exposed roads, where the heat will also make it's presence felt. All the stages are relatively short, however that will add to the tightness in the overall classification.

The race is to be decided on the time-trial on the third day, a 9 kilometer long route in Ajman which will dictate some small gaps heading into the mountains, on the climb to Jebel Jais on the fourth stage which features a 21.1 kilometer long ascent at 5.4% average gradient, which may see some small gaps appear, but the decisive day will be the final aswell as the peloton heads to Jebel Hafeet. There, every year the peloton explodes in the tough gradients of the exposed climb, it features 10.9Km at 6.7% average gradient but is rather inconsistent climb, very explosive and usually one where big gaps can be made despite the lack of overall stage difficulty.

The startlist quality is rather enormous specially when it comes to the sprinters, where you find names like Mark Cavendish, Pascal Ackermann, Marc Sarreau, Jasper Philipsen, Sam Bennett, Arnaud Démare, Elia Viviani, Rudy Barbier, Olav Kooij, Dylan Groenewegen and Cees Bol.

As for the riders eyeing the GC, you will find the likes of defending champion Tadej Pogacar coming back to defend his title, João Almeida, Gino Mäder, Pello Bilbao, Aleksandr Vlasov, Jai Hindley, Adam Yates, Tom Dumoulin, Jan Hirt, Fausto masnada and Romain Bardet. Filippo Ganna is also one to watch.

You will be able to keep up with the race here on CyclingUpToDate as we bring you race reports and interviews on a daily basis.