Sjoerd Bax saw Pogacar up-close in Sierra Nevada: "Challenging, but impressive how he's handling it"

From the Tour Down Under to Liège-Bastogne-Liège, Bax was a consistent presence in the UAE-Team Emirates squad, getting to witness Pogacar's brilliant performances in races such as the Amstel Gold Race and Tour of Flanders up-close. He himself made an impression with a 13th place finish in Paris-Roubaix, after spending the entire day in the thick of the action.

The announcer on duty struggled a bit with the pronunciation of the Dutch rider's first name. "Zjooorddd Bax," echoed through the Swiss speakers. Bax himself found it amusing. "The Germans come pretty close. With the French, it's a different story: it becomes more like 'Zjoerd du Baques' - very exaggerated," he laughs heartily.

The 27-year-old hard rider resumes racing in Switzerland after a period of one and a half months without a race. "I feel like I'm still in the process of building up because Liège wasn't that long ago. After that, I took a week of rest and then started training again. My form is coming along, but it will probably peak after Switzerland, I think."

Prior to the WorldTour stage race, Bax spent time in the Sierra Nevada with UAE-Team Emirates. "I already went on a high altitude training camp last year with my girlfriend, and it went very well back then. This time, it's a bit different, but we'll see. Everything was well organized, but the weather wasn't perfect. We had a lot of snow and hail, but fortunately, we were still able to get in some good training rounds. I expected to go there with forty degrees and sunshine, but it was Dutch weather. Just like in the Giro," he adds, referring to the rainy conditions that also plagued the Italian tour.

In Spain, Bax also trained with Pogacar, the leader of his team in the Tour de France. The question on everyone's mind is, of course, how is the Slovenian all-rounder doing? "He was looking good. I never had a moment where I thought he wasn't ready," Bax tells us. "If his wrist is fine, and things seem to be heading in the right direction there, then he's ready."

However, Bax believes that the wrist fracture sustained in Liège-Bastogne-Liège did affect Pogacar mentally. "His wrist made it mentally tough for him. Otherwise, he would have had a week of vacation, but now he had to start rehab immediately. So that's tough, but it's also impressive how he's handling it. He continued to train well at home."

In the spring, Bax was one of the guys who gave Pogacar the most support, but according to him, the chances are slim that it will be the same in the Tour de France. "I am currently a reserve for the Tour, but something crazy would have to happen for me to go there. We have such a strong team, even with reserves," he refers to the competition at UAE-Team Emirates, which he truly enjoys. "It's really cool getting to ride with those guys, and that is a huge motivator during a high altitude training camp. While you might wind down if you're part of another team, here you continue to give it your all."

But first, a few more days in Switzerland, followed by the Dutch National Championship. "It's a challenging week, and I also want to see what I can do in that time trial. In previous years, I never participated in the Dutch National Time Trial Championships, but now I'll give it a go with the great equipment we have," says Bax, who we might see in the line of fire in Switzerland as well. "We do have Juan Ayuso, a general classification rider. We'll see. I don't know if I'll get a chance to be in front."