Although Evenepoel was a clear second, finishing well ahead of the race for 3rd, the
Soudal - Quick-Step leader was in turn, clearly distanced by Pogacar by the time the finish line arrived. "There was about an Instagram post by Velon with his average wattage of the last hour and a half. That couldn't be right, because I had the same wattage and was three minutes behind. So I sent him: I want to know what you really pedalled," recalls Evenepoel. "Tadej didn't tell me, but it was a joking and sarcastic question. We send each other jovial messages every now and then. When one of us has a birthday, for example. He's not my best friend, but he is a good colleague friend."
Given their close bond though, and the fact the pair have faced off numerous times on the road of late, Evenepoel is beginning to be able to predict when a Pogacar attack is coming. Doing something about it though, is altogether more difficult.
"The four or five minutes before he attacked, his team accelerated," Evenepoel recalls. "You could feel that he was going to accelerate after that, but at that moment I was already at the limit. During his attack, he quickly added a minute, that says enough."
