Blood, sweat and tears: Pogacar crashes, but injuries don't keep him from another dominant Strade Bianche victory

Last year, it was the great Tadej Pogacar show. The Slovenian attacked on Monte Sante Marie, 85 kilometers from the finish, and demolished his so-called competitors with a commanding solo ride. This year, the world champion returned as the undisputed favorite, especially with the added distance and elevation—Strade Bianche had truly become a climber’s race.

While the women’s race struggled to establish an early breakaway, the men had no such issues. A group of ten riders managed to escape from the peloton: Connor Swift (INEOS Grenadiers), Lewis Askey (Groupama-FDJ), Stan Dewulf (Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale), Anders Foldager (Jayco-AlUla), Johan Price-Pejtersen (Alpecin-Deceuninck), Mark Donovan (Q36.5 Pro Cycling), Simone Petilli (Intermarché-Wanty), Albert Philipsen (Lidl-Trek), Fabian Weiss (Tudor Pro Cycling), and Pepijn Reinderink (Soudal Quick-Step) formed the breakaway. However, the group gradually thinned as the race progressed.

Philipsen suffered multiple punctures and even crashed, preventing the 18-year-old Dane—the youngest in the field—from staying in contention for long. Price-Pejtersen and Petilli also dropped back quickly. Philipsen wasn’t the only one facing bad luck, as the peloton saw multiple crashes. Christian Scaroni, Diego Ulissi (both XDS Astana), and David Gaudu (Groupama-FDJ) were forced to abandon after falling. Scaroni also fractured his collarbone in the crash.

With around 80 kilometers to go, on the Monte Sante Marie sector, only a select group of favorites remained. Surprisingly, it wasn’t Pogacar who ignited the action—it was Tom Pidcock. The Brit launched an attack right after the longest gravel sector of the day, prompting an immediate response from Pogacar. The world champion couldn’t resist and countered right away. Q36.5 Pro Cycling’s leader had to give it everything to hang on—but he managed to. Together, they bridged to Connor Swift, the last remaining rider from the early breakaway.

The three breakaway riders seemed to be heading smoothly toward the finale—until Pogacar lost focus. The world champion took a corner too fast and slid out, somersaulting into the roadside embankment before landing in the bushes. Fortunately, he was able to remount quickly, but his body was covered in cuts and bruises. After a short chase, Pidcock eased up to allow him to regain contact, leaving just two riders at the front—Swift was dropped, after nearly following Pogacar into the ditch.

Despite his injuries, Pogacar still appeared to have solid legs. Behind them, a strong chase group was forming, featuring Lennert Van Eetvelt (Lotto), Ben Healy (EF Education-EasyPost), Pello Bilbao (Bahrain Victorious), Roger Adriá (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe), and Tim Wellens. Though the gap was significant, the chase group was closing in impressively. With the Colle Pinzuto and Le Tolfe still ahead, was there a chance for a thrilling finale?

The answer was a resounding no. At the base of the Colle Pinzuto, Pogacar unleashed a brutal acceleration. Whether it could even be called a proper attack was up for debate—the Slovenian simply powered away from the saddle, surging up the steep gravel climbs. Pidcock put up a valiant fight but ultimately had to concede. Pogacar was gone, and his lead over his British rival quickly ballooned. By the time he crested Le Tolfe, he had already put a minute into Pidcock, while behind, Wellens had broken away from the chase group, making the battle for second place suddenly interesting.

For the victory, however, there was no suspense, despite the dramatic race developments. Pogacar cruised into Siena, securing back-to-back wins in the Italian classic. Behind him, Pidcock managed to hold off the charging Wellens, securing second place, while the Belgian put in a phenomenal ride to claim third, standing on the podium alongside his dominant UAE Team Emirates-XRG leader.