"Pogacar, Remco Evenepoel or Primoz Roglic don't intimidate me at all" - Enric Mas

Enric Mas is a changed man since last summer as he turned around his attitude on the bike. After suffering several crashes throughout the spring and abandoning the Tour de France his confidence was at an all-time low. However he bounced back and became stronger than ever, and admits he does not fear the dominators of the current peloton.

"Pogacar, Remco Evenepoel or Primoz Roglic don't intimidate me at all. What you have to do is try to hurt them when they least expect it," Mas said in the Joan Seguidor podcast. "After the 2022 Tour de France, I found my passion for cycling again, but before that I was in a period where I found it difficult to cycle every day." Mas was one of the riders who was the most criticized by the Spanish fanbase, even being confronted by a fan last year at the Vuelta a Espana after a finale in seek of social media attention.

Luck and his environment were not on his side, but he rekindled his passion for cycling after the Tour de France, and managed to soar into a second place at the Vuelta a Espana and Il Lombardia, as well as winning the Giro dell'Emilia in front of Tadej Pogacar. The Spaniard took up the decisive leadership spot at Movistar Team which was being left by Alejandro Valverde, and also showed climbing capacity that he hadn't in the past, and more confidence because of it.

“I have a good feeling this season and I am really looking forward to it. I have a passion for cycling again," he assured. At the Vuelta a Andalucia he once again showed to be Tadej Pogacar's closest competitor, and will hope to see his best form throughout the Grand Tours. Mas rode to 17th spot at Flèche Wallone in a warm-up for Liège-Bastogne-Liège, and today he departs as an outsider for what is a more climber-friendly race.