Pogacar & McNulty: Historic Wins | Cycling News

Winning the Montreal Cycling Grand Prix Sunday is a very big deal for Brandon McNultyrepresenting as it does the biggest single day success of his career, and ranking alongside his stage wins in the Giro d’Italia and Vuelta a España.

But it’s a very big deal too for his UAE Team Emirates squad, and for more than one reason.

Firstly, the race confirmed that Tadej Pogacar is on course for the upcoming world championships, with his dominant but ultimately self-sacrificing performance a marked improvement over his understated display two days earlier in the Grand Prix Cycliste de Québec.

It was also the first time ever than any team had taken first and second overall in the 14 year history of the event.

But most significantly of all, it also saw the UAE Team Emirates squad draw level with the record tally of the Columbia-HTC squad, which became the winningest squad in pro cycling history back in 2009 when it clocked up 85 wins.

“I think it is special,” a beaming McNulty said at the finish of the WorldTour event.

“Obviously we were close last year. It was a big goal of the team to have this record so now we are tied. I guess we need one more to break the record. I didn’t even realise I was the one to tie this, so that is a really cool statistic, I guess.”

Pogacar Agreeed.

“It has been a really successful season for the team,” said the Slovenian, who appeared to be back to his upbeat self after a deflated vibe towards the end of this year’s Tour de France.

“A lot of guys have opportunities, a lot of guys are winning. They take their chances and they really show how hard they work.

“Almost everyone has a win in the team and everybody works for this super hard. It is important and we are super proud to have so many wins this year.”

Several weeks remain in the season and, given the momentum the team has this year plus Pogačar’s current form, few would bet against UAE Team Emirates-XRG adding several more victories to that tally.

‘A super fun day’

McNulty’s success looked unlikely with just under two laps to go on Sunday’s event. He and Pogačar were away with the US road race champion Quinn Simmons (Lidl-Trek) and Louis Barré (Intermarche-Wanté), with McNulty driving at the front to set things up for a big move by Pogačar on the tough Côte de Camillien-Houde climb.

The world champ duly powered clear, opening a solid gap. Barré was dropped and McNulty was able to dispatch Simmons, pushing ahead in what looked to be a bid for second place.

However the unexpected happened when Pogačar got on the race radio, spoke briefly and then eased back, dropping his speed sufficiently for McNulty to rejoin.

The American got across with 15.4km to go and latched onto the back wheel of Pogačar, who drove towards the finish. He did all the work and then pushed McNulty forward just before the line, sealing his big success.

“With maybe four laps to go he asked me if I wanted to try to go solo and I said, ‘I can try,’ McNulty laughed. “So then we made this move on the climb and then he it ended up in a group of four and then he went.

“I was able to come across, he waited for me, and he was kind enough to give me the win. I am really thankful for that. It was a super fun day.”

Saying thanks to a loyal teammate

Pogačar’s seated acceleration immediately distanced his teammate and Simmons, who chased in vain and left himself exposed to the subsequent counter attack by the second UAE rider.

And while McNulty was clearly going well, the extent to which the world champion held back on the climbs once they linked back up made clear he could have won solo had he wished.

Handing his loyal super domestique was a powerful gesture. It also showed that the upcoming world championships are the real target.

“I saw that he is very strong,” Pogačar said when asked about his decision to hand over the win. “All the team was super strong today and we reduced the bunch quite fast in the race because we ride a super hard pace.

“I told Brandon if you want to go on an attack you can go. Then I joined him on the top of the climb and we went together. When I was alone he bridged across to me. It was quite fast [soon] we knew who was going to win.”

While McNulty readily confirmed that he was handed the win, Pogačar appeared to be trying to play down that decision. It was clearly the case, but he didn’t want to officially confirm that.

But when asked if it was the slowest sprint he ever did in his career, he smiled, he laughed and he replied. “Probably, yes.”

‘One of the hardest one day races in the world’

For Simmons, the experience must have felt a little harrowing. Two against one is never easy, be it in a fistfight or in a finale, but when the two in question including the four-time Tour de France winner and his strong teammate, that’s got to be intimidating.

Still, he was accepting of the result, and could see the silver lining.

“If you are going to lose, it is okay to lose to these two, I guess,” the US champion smiled. “It is my best result in a WorldTour one day. So to be on the podium and to be again doing it in the national colors, that is a super result and it is one step forward for me.”

Indeed he confirmed third place greatly exceeded what his own expectations had been prior to the race.

“I said at the start this is one of the hardest one day races in the world. To be honest, I was here to support Skelly [Lidl-Trek teammate Mattias Skjelmose]. I didn’t expect to even make it to the finish today.

“For sure we got killed a bit by UAE, I think we are a bit used to this now at this race. But congrats to them. It is pretty cool that two Americans are on the podium here.”

Simmons slumped to the ground after the finish, with that reaction showing just how tough the race had been mentally and physically.

It was a similarly draining experience for McNulty, who admitted being under pressure even before Pogačar blasted clear.

“I think it is super cool to see your teammates and friends pulling like this. We were in one line most of the day and I was just watching these guys pulling super hard,” he said of his UAE teammates.

“Even behind I was suffering. I didn’t even know if I was going to be able to continue at the speed we were going. When you see them pull like that it is a special motivation.”

It is, but so too is riding behind Tadej Pogačar when he is in full flight.

“When he is the world champion, obviously the best guy in the world, it is super special to go across the line like that,” McNulty smiled.

“It’s one of the most memorable days of my career so far.”