UAE Tour

A mountain top finish awaited the UAE Tour Saturday afternoon – the first time that the race concluded with a showdown between the climbers. But before they moved to the forefront, a breakaway pulled away in the first kilometers and built a five-minute gap.

Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl was represented there by Michael Mørkøv, who was prominent as the group stayed clear until the first ramps of Jebel Hafeet, the 10.8km ascent averaging 6.8%, where the furious pace set by the GC teams shred the peloton to pieces, leaving only a handful of riders in the lead. From there, Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates) took the stage victory and sealed the win in the overall standings with an attack in the closing meters.

“Today was a good opportunity to get in the break and work a bit on the condition for the upcoming races. At the end of the day, it’s been a nice race for us, we got a great victory with Cave – our first of the season at World Tour level – and this gives us confidence for the next goals”, said Michael after the race.

Photo credit: ©Tim De Waele / Getty Images