Tour of California: Pogačar takes lead on Baldy as van Garderen falters

MT. BALDY, California (VN)—WorldTour rookie Tadej Pogačar already races with the strength and poise of a veteran champion.

And he’s just 20 years old.

Pogačar showcased his brain and brawn in the dramatic final kilometers of Friday’s 127km sixth stage of the Amgen Tour of California, which finished atop the Mt. Baldy summit. Pogačar chased a surging Sergio Higuita as George Bennett (Jumbo-Visma) and Richie Porte (Trek-Segafredo) lurked several meters behind his wheel.

Over the course of a kilometer and a half, Pogačar accelerated to catch Higuita, and then backed off, forcing the Colombian to pedal harder and distance Bennett. Then, as the two men came into the final left-hand turn, Pogačar accelerated and then slowed down, before carving through the tight turn and sprinting toward the line.

“I knew the finish on paper, and so I put a lot of pressure on Higuita and he started sprinting and drove the pace too fast into the last corner,” Pogačar said. “I went easier and did a better corner.”

Pogačar’s cagy moves netted him the stage win, a 10-second time bonus, and the yellow race leader’s jersey. He nows leads Higuita in the overall standings by 16 seconds, with Saturday’s hilly sprint stage set to finish off the race.

Earlier this year Pogačar won the overall at Portugal’s Volta ao Algarve, a brutal weeklong stage race on twisting roads. A victory in California is an entirely different accomplishment—it would bring Pogačar his first WorldTour stage race win.

“This feels is different—it is more amazing to win,” Pogačar said. “It is the highest level and I hope tomorrow I can hold onto the jersey, and it would be the biggest win of my career.”

Overnight leader Tejay van Garderen cracked on the steep slopes of the Mt. Baldy climb and hemorrhaged time, crossing the line in 17th position, 1:28 down. Television cameras captured van Garderen cracking with 4km to go, just as young Deceuninck-Quick Step classics rider Kasper Asgreen pulled the group toward breakaway rider Max Schachmann (Bora-Hansgrohe).

The pace, which had been set by van Garderen’s EF teammates, was simply too much for the American.

“I was suffering at the base of the climb and I  was thinking once we caught back Schachmann that it might ease up a bit,” van Garderen said at the finish. “But we had to go really hard, and it was putting me too over the limit. No excuses.”

Van Garderen dropped to 9th place overall, 1:22 behind Pogačar while Higuita moved up from sixth to second place. With one stage remaining, EF Education First looks poised to again finish second in the California race, which would mark six runner-up finishes during the 14-year history of the race.

“I think it was a good week, but I lacked a little bit on the final climb and I still have a ways to go and a lot of training left,” van Garderen said. “It’s not a completely disaster, but it’s a bit of a disappointment.”

Pogačar’s victory marks the next step in an already impressive young career. In 2018 he won three stages at the Tour de l’Avenir, the marquee race for riders under 23. Pogacar said the victory is just part of his long-term goals in pro cycling.

“The goal is to win tomorrow and for sure the Tour of Slovenia this year is really important for me,” Pogačar said. “And for the future I hope that I can do also a really good on grand tours.”

The future’s so bright for Tadej Pogačar.