OFFICIAL | Tadej Pogacar makes season debut at Strade Bianche; Isaac del Toro, Jan Christen and Florian Vermeersch back him up

UAE Team Emirates - XRG is heading to Strade Bianche a man down, as Tim Wellens has suffered a collarbone fracture; however you could hardly imagine a stronger lineup for the sterrato-focused one-day race. Tadej Pogacar is at the start line as the defending champion, and is joined by the growing Isaac del Toro in the lineup.

The Emirati team is going to be the absolute favourite to take the win in Siena this Saturday, with Pogacar being the two-time defending champion. The Slovenian is aiming for his fourth win in the Italian race, and this Thursday is also going to have his own name officially attached to the Colle Pinzuto sterrato sector, as he has won the event three times.

This will be Pogacar's first race of the season; but as has happened before, that by no means he will lack the form or race rhythm to fight for the win. He is the absolute favourite, with the likes of Tom Pidcock and Paul Seixas being the only riders expected to be in contention with the Slovenian.

"Strade is a race where I have unforgettable memories. My record there is pretty good and I hope that I will be in a good position again come Saturday. We expect there to be some strong rivals, the startlist is always at a high level for these big races and it should make things exciting for the fans".

“It is my first race of the season, and I hope to have a good start. I’ve been cheering on from the couch until now, so I’m excited to get stuck in myself again and finally race. The team has been on a good wave at the moment with many wins already and we hope to continue that over the next few races.”

Pogacar is joined by Isaac del Toro in the roads of Tuscany, the rider who blew up the Giro d'Italia last year on the 'mini Strade Bianche' stage. Without Pogacar, a strong victory contender on his own. In the specific circumstances, likely a luxury domestique, in a year where the two will team up at the Tour de France.

However Del Toro can perfectly fight for a place on the final podium, as UAE will, despite missing Tim Wellens who was third last year, be at the start with the strongest collective.

Florian Vermeersch is just off a podium at Omloop het Nieuwsblad where he launched the winning attack together with Mathieu van der Poel; whilst Jan Christen also showed tremendous form at the Ardèche classics.

Felix Grosschartner, Kevin Vermaerke and Domen Novak complete the lineup and will be tasked with working earlier in the day and delivering the teams' top riders in front towards the Monte Sante Marie sector, where the race has historically been blown to bits.