Ferrand-Prévot got drowsy, attacked, crashed, and lost the Strade Bianche victory? "My own fault"

In the UAE Tour, she barely moved forward, but Visma | Lease a Bike proudly watched on Saturday as Pauline Ferrand-Prévot tore up the gravel in Strade Bianche. With a third-place finish, she confirmed the Dutch team’s strong belief in her road ambitions. And perhaps, there could have been even more in it…

The 33-year-old Ferrand-Prévot has (as is now well known) started chapter two of her road career. After filling her trophy cabinet on the mountain bike, she now wants to win again on the road. Or on gravel, as in Strade Bianche. With 17th place in the UAE Tour, there weren’t necessarily any signs of life yet, but Saturday was a completely different story. "This is a great start to the season," she said via Visma | Lease a Bike's official channels.

The yellow-black formation went all-in for Ferrand-Prévot, who boldly bridged across to a group that formed in the finale. "When Mavi Garcia accelerated, I thought it was a good moment to go along. My goal was to start the final climb with a lead, but unfortunately, the group behind closed the gap. I was at my limit, and when I saw the gap growing, I focused on securing third place. I gave everything I had and won the sprint for third. I'm really happy with that."

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Ferrand-Prévot was still quickly dropped in the UAE Tour

Ferrand-Prévot unsure what could have been with crash and breakaway attempt

Could there have been more in it? What if Ferrand-Prévot hadn’t joined the breakaway and had saved her energy? What if she hadn’t slipped awkwardly on a descent? Speaking with IDLProCycling.com, she entertained those thoughts. "Demi and Anna were stronger on Le Tolfe, but maybe I gave too much in the breakaway. I just thought it was better to have a lead on them because I didn’t know how the dynamics would play out. Despite everything, I felt good."

Regarding the crash, the French rider admitted fault. "The team did an amazing job keeping me at the front at all times. I just crashed myself on the asphalt—that was my own stupid mistake. Did it hurt? To be honest, I told myself it was my own fault, so I wasn’t allowed to complain. Of course, it hurt, but I tried to stay focused on the race, otherwise, it would have been over anyway. We’ll see afterward how bad it really is."

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Poof, there went Ferrand-Prévot....

How much better can Ferrand-Prévot get?

"I’m on the right track because I don’t think I’m at top form yet," Ferrand-Prévot said about her legs compared to those of Vollering and Van der Breggen. "I have work to do and will need to sit on the wheel if I want to win. I also attacked because I had been in a medium zone for too long. That can make you feel drowsy, so you have to try something. It was a good choice, and I don’t think I necessarily wasted too much energy in the breakaway, but maybe I did with that crash."

Still, she received confirmation that she can compete with the best. Ferrand-Prévot spoke about "regaining confidence" and "believing in herself," and the fact that Strade Bianche was on the calendar helped. "I wanted to be good here because I’m technically strong on gravel. As a mountain biker, I knew everything, but for a race like this, I didn’t. That’s why I went on a reconnaissance ride with a teammate, where I rode the entire course."

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