“Hopefully I can follow Pogacar when he attacks" - Ben O'Connor expecting GC attacks on stage 2 of Giro d'Italia

Crossing the line in 19th place on stage 1, Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale Team's Ben O'Connor already finds himself 14 seconds down on Tadej Pogacar at the 2024 Giro d'Italia.

With a mountainous finale to stage 2 on the mythical slopes of Oropa, the Australian is predicting more GC attacks this afternoon. “The first day is always tricky, it's different for each person. I often have some difficulty getting started, that's why I'm happy that I rode well yesterday," reflected O'Connor in his pre-race interview ahead of stage 2.

Although Tadej Pogacar didn't manage to take the stage on the opening day, that honour going to Jhonatan Narvaez of the INEOS Grenadiers, the Slovenian managed to take time on all his main rivals and O'Connor is expecting Pogacar to attack again on stage 2.

Will the Australian be able to match the UAE Team Emirates leader on Oropa? “Hopefully I can follow Pogacar when he attacks," O'Connor assesses. "I'm going to try to ride my best climb and then I'll see where it ends up.”