With a lead of 2:40 at the first rest day, Tadej Pogacar is looking good to take the Maglia Rosa at the 2024 Giro d'Italia and complete the first leg of his Giro/Tour double. As such, the UAE Team Emirates admits it makes sense to ride more conservative in the coming weeks.
"If someone had told me in advance that I would have a lead of 2:40 after nine stages, I would have immediately signed for it," the Slovenian assesses in his rest day press conference. "If you analyze it this way, it was a perfect week for us. So far it's 10 out of 10 for us in this Giro."
Taking wins on three of the nine stages so far, Pogacar has also been front and centre of the sprint stages too, attacking on stage in the finale before being caught in the final few hundred metres and then, on stage 9, he took control of the peloton and reeled in the attack of Jhonatan Narvaez to allow his teammate, Juan Sebastian Molano a chance to sprint.
Could we see a more reserved Pogacar in the coming weeks however? "I'm already thinking about the Tour. That's why I'm happy with the bigger gap we already have in the rankings," he says. "I can try not to put too much stock in the rest of the Giro, I don't need to take any more time. We can race defensively and use the team to get me to the finish."
"Tuesday's stage to Cusano Mutri reminds me a bit of the one to Prati di Tivo, maybe we can go for a win again, but we take it day by day," he concludes. "The last stage of the second week may be my toughest day ever on a bike. I am looking forward to riding via the Mortirolo to Livigno, a monster stage, but I have already trained there many times."
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