Slovenian conquers Jebel Hafeet and wins overall title

Tadej Pogačar used the 7th and final stage of the UAE Tour, 148 km starting from Al Ain and finishing uphill at Jebel Hafeet, to extend his impressive winning streak.

By beating Adam Yates at the end of an intense duel, the Slovenian took his third consecutive victory at Jebel Hafeet and repeated the overall victory of the UAE Tour.
The win tally for Pogačar already in 2022 rises to three, while for UAE Team Emirates the victory count rises to 8.

Before the summit, UAE Team Emirates put in a huge team effort to put their leader in place.

Pogačar moved to the front only 3 km from the finish to follow an intense attack from Adam Yates. The duo were subsequently joined by Pello Bilbao and João Almedia, with the latter able to make a counterattack, before being neutralized shortly after.

Yates found the energy to go again, but the Slovenian of UAE Team Emirates resisted with determination, passing the British rider in a two-up sprint.

Pogačar: “I am delighted to have won the UAE Tour and to have conquered the finish line of Jebel Hafeet for the third time. It is a climb that suits my characteristics well, with steep slopes and a technical final stretch.

In the final, with Almeida in the leading group, we set ourselves the goal of winning the stage, so João also tried to take advantage of his good condition to attack and get the win. However, Yates was on a great day and yolk him back: at that point, I concentrated on following him and winning the sprint .We found ourselves in a similar situation to last year, although I struggled to stay with Adam: his attacks are among the best in the world of cycling, so I’m happy I was able to follow him and get the jump on him in the sprint.

Winning the UAE Tour is very important for our team, it’s fantastic to be able to celebrate with our sponsors: I thank everyone for the great contribution made this week. ”

Pogačar dominated the sprint atop on his Colnago bike equipped with Campagnolo Super Record EPS Disc Brake groupset and with Campagnolo full carbon Bora wheels.

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