Liège-Bastogne-Liège: Pogacar triumphs, Ciccone on the podium

It is destiny that at Liege there is no direct clash between pogacar e evenepoel, who had shared the previous four editions. It is not the fault of the Slovenian, who plays himself to the fullest by scoring the hat-trick, but rather of the Belgian, who evaporated in an instant when the race heats up: whether it is a physical decline after five months of absence from competitions or the psychological weight of the comparison, for the Olympic champion it is a terrible day.

A great day instead for Tadej pogacar, another of many: the attack from a seated position on the iconic Redoute ramp, 35 from the finish, is enough for him to show up alone in Liège and dedicate the success to his mother-in-law who passed away three years ago. In addition to updating the album of records: above all that of having finished on the podium in the last eight monument classics disputed, with five victories (two Liège, two Lombardy and one Flanders), a second (Roubaix) and two third places (Sanremo '24 and '25'), better than even Merckx. Then of being the active rider with the most monumental races won, nine, one more than Van der Poel, equaling Coppi, Girardengo and Kelly. Finally, of having won seven times in fourteen days of racing and of never having left the podium in all the day races faced this season. Stratospheric numbers for someone who does the numbers first and foremost on the bike.

For once, even our poor man can feed on numbers Cycling: behind the Slovenian Martian, he places three in the top six. Very good Julius Ciccone, who after six years brings Italy back to the podium after having already climbed there at the Lombardia: attacking immediately after Pogacar had taken off earned him the best possible result in the presence of the world champion. 'I had no pressure or expectations, but I knew I was doing well', the happiness of the Abruzzese. Completing the work are Velasco and Bagioli, the fastest in the assorted group that never gives the impression of being able to get close to those in front. Least of all Pogacar, who transforms the Liège into the classic with less history because he needs less than a kilometer to create a gap. "This wasn't the plan, but I saw that there were no more compact teams at the start of the Redoute and I pulled away: at the top, since I was doing well, I went straight on..." - he says. Easier said than done, for any human.

Order of arrival 111th Liège-Bastogne-Liège: 1) Tadej pogacar (Slo, Uae) km 252 in 6h 00'09'' (average 41,983), 2) ciccone at 1'03'', 3) Healy (Irl) st, 4) Velasco at 1'10'', 5) NYS (Bel) st, 6) Bagioli, 59) evenepoel (Bel) at 3'11''.