The new-look, five-day Tour de Suisse might well be over after just one day, after Tadej Pogačar (UAE Emirates-XRG) soloed away from his rivals 72km from the finish, winning in Sondrio by 2:14.
Only two other riders – Richard Carapaz (EF Education-Easypost) and Andrea Bagioli (Lidl-Trek) – lie within four minutes of the race leader, and the Slovenian could well extend his GC lead again on today's second stage, which features a hilly finish in Locarno.
Nobody had an answer for the World Champion when he took off just after the very first climb of the race at Buglio in Monte. Speaking ahead of stage 2, several other riders in the Tour de Suisse peloton gave their opinion on Pogačar's dominant ride.
Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe racer Finn Fisher-Black headed to Switzerland fresh off a good week at the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, where he finished second on stage 4. He was among many blown away by Pogačar's effort.
"I was thinking yesterday could be a nice stage, but I think everyone was a bit surprised by what happened in the end," the New Zealander told CyclingPro. Meanwhile, Decathlon CMA CGM rider Tiesj Benoot, making his season debut, said there's little anyone could've done to change the outcome.
"I said to [teammate] Matthew Riccitello, 'Make sure you're with him!' If he could follow for a long time, it would be a good situation. Only, it didn't last long," he told Het Laatste Nieuws.
"I was the only one over 70kg in the group. But even if we had ridden, we wouldn't have caught him, mind you. It's difficult to race when someone stands so far above the rest."
Fisher-Black ended the day 21 minutes down on the winner, while Benoot enjoyed a good outing on his long-awaited 2026 bow, racing to 17th among a large chase group, 4:30 down.
Swiss racer Mauro Schmid (Jayco-AlUla) finished in 36th, 13:22 down. He told CyclingPro that few riders predicted the stage would be as "crazy" as it was.
"It was a super hard first stage. We expected something super hard, but maybe not as crazy as it was in the end," he said.
"I think they just put a super hard pace on the first climb. I felt more or less OK, but then there was a bit of a split in the downhill, and when I heard Tadej attacked, I knew that was probably it for the day."
Will there be more of the same on stage 2, the 157.7km race around Locarno with the climbs of Fanghi and Orselina coming inside the final 15km?
Mathieu van der Poel expects more of the same from Pogačar and his team.
"It's clear that they're very motivated to race at UAE as well, so let's see about today," he told CyclingPro.
"It looks very hard again, the final, so it depends on how they race, but I expect that they'll do the same as yesterday, so, for sure, it will be hard to be there."
Fisher-Black agreed, saying that he expects much of the peloton to let go on the first of the two finishing climbs.
"I think for sure they will do it. I think everyone knows," he said.
"For a lot of guys, the finish line will be the first climb in the final. We just need to be at the front, be ready, and be on the wheel, and then it's whatever happens.
"I don't think there's a moment to anticipate before UAE start to go. I think it's just we focus on what we can do and hope that Tadej is a bit tired after yesterday, maybe."
Mathias Vacek, the Lidl-Trek leader who raced to fifth among a group of four riders at 4:02 down, said that he hopes the second stage will be a bit more "open", with more chances for other riders.
"I think he wants to win as much as possible, like everybody. Maybe it will be a bit more open today than yesterday. We'll see how it works out."
Subscribe to Cyclingnews for unlimited access to our Tour de Suisse coverage. Don't miss any of the breaking news, race analysis, and expert insight as the riders make their final preparations for Le Tour. Plus, access the Cyclingnews app to follow the action on the go! Join today.
