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Anything Tadej Pogačar can do, Jonas Vingegaard can do, too.
After Pogačar dominated the opening race day of the season, Vingegaard showed that he’s not about to be left behind.
The Jumbo-Visma rider took victory at his first opportunity, winning stage 2 of the O Gran Camiño to Monte Trega. The opening stage of the race was cut short due to snow.
Vingegaard came into the race as the overwhelming favorite and he lived up to those expectations with a stinging attack on the final climb with just over two kilometers to go. By the finish line, he had some 21 seconds ahead of the second-placed rider Ruben Guerreiro (Movistar).
“It’s a very satisfying feeling to be able to finish off an excellent team effort in this way,” Vingegaard said. “Three guys in the team usually ride for our development team. It is impressive to see them holding their own here among the WorldTour teams. Everyone has done their bit. Hopefully, we can show some good things in the coming days.”
Also read:
- O Gran Camiño stage 1 stopped with 20km to go due to heavy snow
- Tadej Pogačar skips Strade Bianche defense, focuses on Paris-Nice showdown with Jonas Vingegaard
- Jumbo-Visma and its daring ‘pursuit of perfection’
The four-day O Gran Camiño is Vingegaard’s first race of the season after pulling the plug on his 2022 campaign at Il Lombardia. The Dane is scheduled to go to Paris-Nice next week, where he will meet Pogačar for the first time this season, and then Itzulia Basque Country at the start of April.
With Pogačar blitzing the Ruta del Sol, Vingegaard’s showing in Spain is a good sign that he may not storm away with the GC victory at Paris-Nice.
Vingegaard’s not thinking that far ahead just yet and he’s got his eyes set on taking the overall win at O Gran Camiño this weekend.
“This win feels very good. I felt excellent during the day. The guys worked hard. Luckily, I had the legs to finish it off. The form is good, but I knew that beforehand,” he said. “It was a tough climb, not least because of the cobbles in the last kilometer. I pushed myself to the limit. I wanted to win, especially for my girlfriend. Now we have the jersey, and of course, we want to keep it. The goal is to win the GC.”