The asphalt of Port Ainé is rough, cracked and bumpy. Sometimes the snow on the slopes thaws and makes it wet. That road, which leads to the second high end of the Volta, witnesses and witnesses the audacity of Landism, that quixotic spirit that is not afraid to fight giants. Mikel Landa is not confused, those before him are not windmills, but a real ogre. And yet, aware of what could happen to him, that he is going to get into trouble, he decides to go after him and try to stab him with the spear. Landism resurfaces with an attack 7.5 km from the summit but runs into reality.
It is Tadej Pogacar who is dressed in the green franji jersey. A leader who does not want anyone to cough on him in the Volta. A cyclist who never gets off the podium, who never gets tired of winning. The Slovenian responds to Landa's bravado and doubles the bet. He responds to the knock and launches another attack immediately. An effort within the reach of very few, and one that the 34-year-old from Alava, who has benefited from the change to the Soudal team, Evenepoel's team, does not reach.
The double Tour champion did not have enough with Vallter's victory and goes alone for his second victory in the Catalan round. The third in 2024, where he was also second in the first stage in Sant Feliu de Guíxols and third in Milan-Sanremo. In five days of competition he has always been in the positions of honor.
Pogacar's figure continues to grow in history as his rivals see him recede into the background, into the distance. The Slovenian, who at 25 years old, already has 66 successes, the same as a legend of the classics like Johan Museeuw in his entire career, one more than all those collected by a sprinter like Marcel Wüst and only four behind Mariano Cañardo, lives to win. , the Volta's record man, with seven total victories.
“If you can win, you should win,” he says with ambition. But the UAE cyclist, far from being in the last place, is just starting his fifth season as a professional.
Behind the magnificent, join Landa and Sepp Kuss (Visma), two of the best climbers in the world peloton. Cyclists who love the mountains, Alava and the United States have conquered great mountain passes, launched attacks, and raised their arms in important races, which has led them to the podium. They are dreamers who make the fans vibrate, who are liked, but even by collaborating they cannot follow Pogacar, who is a climber but is much more.
Landa, with the mountain jersey – on loan, of course, because it also belongs to number 1, which monopolizes everything – is once again second at the finish line. He loses less than a minute, the only one, but already 2m27s in the untouchable classification. “The objective was to get a little more advantage from the third. It's a shame that Pogacar is here and that victory is so difficult,” highlights the man from Alava, who was aware that he was awakening the beast with his attack. “I knew it was going to get hot but I was hoping to go with him,” he confesses. It's not possible. Not in this Volta. “It is difficult to aspire to something more than the podium. We have to try to follow him without exploiting,” Sepp Kuss resigns.
