Van Aert and Visma Condemn Controversial Vuelta TT as Pogačar Kills Competition on Day 1

The high-stakes Vuelta a España stage 1 time trial around Monaco proved as divisive as the Formula 1 track it was modeled upon.

Speaking after the Vuelta’s opening stage Saturday night, Wout van Aert and Visma-Lease a Bike hit out at a parcours convoluted by tight corners, narrow lanes, dark tunnels, and fast, technical descents.

If viewed out of context, the Vuelta’s gonzo take on a TT could have been a CX or MTB course.

“I didn’t think it was worthy of a grand tour,” Visma-Lease a Bike head of performance Mathieu Heijboer told Het Laatste Nieuws.

“If it rained or someone had bad luck, it would be a disaster. We should just be glad that it went well,” Heijboer said Saturday.

Van Aert had circled Saturday’s 9.4km opener as a chance to take the leader’s jersey in his first grand tour for more than a year. Heijboer said the Belgian baller even set up a course to train on that mirrored its hyper-technicality.

It didn’t pay off.

Van Aert finished the stage in eighth, nine seconds slower than stage-winner Tadej Pogačar.

The Monaco TT: ‘On the edge’?

Van Aert said after the stage he wasn’t willing to take the risks required on a course where a lot could go wrong.

He acknowledged it was his choice to race tentatively but, like his director Heijboer, he questioned whether the course was fit for purpose.

“The surroundings were really unique, and it was special to be able to race here on closed roads and on the F1 circuit,” Van Aert told Sporza. “I enjoyed that.

“But at certain points it was too technical and on the limit, especially through the park and around the marina.

“I did a reconnaissance, and it is ultimately my own choice to take fewer risks. So that’s certainly not an excuse. It’s just my opinion,” he added.

Saturday’s 9.4km TT through “the wealthiest state in the world” was, speaking subjectively, an eyesore. As a viewer, it was a terrible watch.

And it looked like a minefield for riders.

The course was lined with barriers with dangerous protruding feet.

White road traffic markings painted all over the tarmac made it hard to compute racing lines.

An out-and-back section separated by only some token traffic cones seemed like a disaster waiting to happen.

The historic Monaco F1 circuit is often slated for being dangerous and too tight for open racing.

Movistar racer Cian Uijtdebroeks told HLN the Vuelta a España’s twist on the motorsport circuit was “madness.”

But for race organizers, Saturday was likely a lucrative money spinner – the mega-bucks Monaco state will have paid plenty to host the gran salida – and a chance to tempt Pogačar to come play in his home town.

Did Pogačar win La Vuelta on day 1?

Pogačar certainly wasn’t complaining about a course that almost ran past his front door.

His split-second victory over Ethan Hayter won him a career-first red jersey. It might even have won him the entire grand tour.

Pogačar’s rivals are way off the back, already.

Pogi’s UAE Emirates-XRG teammate, Joao Almeida, was best-placed of the GC candidates at 18 seconds back. Grand tour veterans Primož Roglič and Richard Carapaz were next best at 22 and 33 seconds.

And Felix Gall, the rider tipped for second place on the podium? He lost 46 seconds already.

Judging by Pogačar’s demolition of the Tour de France, King Pog killed the Vuelta on day 1.

Speaking after the stage Saturday night, Pogačar said he could leverage his home-court advantage without taking on undue risk.

“I was motivated because I live here. The course passed where I go every day on a bike or walking,” Pogačar said in his post-stage conference.

“That was a big confidence boost because I knew every corner really well, so I didn’t need to take any risks. I was comfortable through the technical parts.

“There was no real pacing strategy. It was just like going all out on this 10-minute effort with a lot of corners,” he added.

Pogačar might have won the Vuelta with that 10-minute effort around his back yard.

There’s a strong chance he could hold the red jersey he won on home roads all the way through to the final stage in Granada.

Monaco might next be seeing the maillotrojo when Pogačar unpacks his suitcase three weeks from now.