Chapter 301 - 169: You Have to Give It Your All to Help Us Secure a Home Victory

The winner of the Liège Race came as no surprise to cycling fans around the world, but the overall results held a pleasant surprise that exceeded all expectations.

The unsurprising part was, of course, Pogačar successfully defending his title, which everyone felt was only natural.

Such was the strength of the world’s number one road cyclist, a position that seemed utterly unshakable.

But contrary to everyone’s expectations, fans around the world had thought van der Poel would be the one to stage another brilliant duel with Pogačar, just like at Milan-San Remo—

—but in the decisive attack on Fortress Mountain, the protagonist was not van der Poel, but Huang Chong, a rookie who had just joined the Bora Team on the World Tour this year.

To be honest, from the fans’ perspective, especially in the eyes of the Chinese fans, when everyone saw Huang Chong powering up Fortress Mountain and managing to stick with Pogačar alone, they were all ecstatic, believing he had the strength to challenge the world’s number one cyclist one-on-one.

But when they saw him finally get dropped on Furnace Slope, the fans first felt a pang of regret and disappointment. Soon, however, they came to their senses. After all, his opponent was Pogačar!

Of course, for Huang Chong to secure second place overall in his very first Monument Classic, no one—aside from perhaps himself—was dissatisfied with the result.

First off, the team was thrilled.

After Huang Chong secured second place, the entire coaching staff, including team CEO Ralph Denke, was celebrating wildly.

Next were the commentators, Steve and Jimmy, as well as the hosts and analysts for China Sports back home. They were all delighted, and in their post-race wrap-up, they heaped praise and recognition on Huang Chong’s performance.

Don’t think for a second that second place makes you the biggest loser, as Kobe once said.

In reality, for a rookie to cross the line in a Monument Classic second only to Pogačar, even beating van der Poel—with a performance like that, Huang Chong’s market value will absolutely skyrocket once the transfer window opens.

The only thing left to determine his precise commercial value is whether the Bora Team will have him race in this year’s Tour de France and, if so, what kind of spectacular performance he can deliver there.

For instance, could he finish in the top ten of the general classification?

Or could he win even just one of the 21 stages of the Tour de France?

If he can prove himself at the Tour de France, it will be a sure thing: Huang Chong will have shot to stardom in his very first season on the World Tour.

"His raw power is still a bit lacking. Pogačar is just too much of a beast!! But it was a glorious defeat for Huang Chong today!!"

"I agree with the post above. Pogačar really is one of the Mars People of road cycling. Congrats to him for winning the Liège Race twice!! But for Huang Chong to perform like this in his first season is seriously impressive. His future is so bright!!"

"I’m already looking forward to next year’s Liège Race, so he can challenge Pogačar again!!"

"Pogačar is invincible!! But Huang Chong’s improvement from the start of the season is progressing at a visibly rapid pace. I’m calling it now: if he keeps this up, he’ll definitely be able to challenge Pogačar’s number one spot within three years!"

"No matter what, he’s already the absolute leader for the Bora Team in one-day races!! Anyway, Brother Luo is like Vingegaard; neither of them can compete in the one-day races, so this won’t affect Huang Chong’s status within the team!!"

"That’s right! As long as he gets more race days in and gains more experience, his overall ability will definitely reach another level!"

...

After the official results of the Liège Race were posted, cycling fans from all over China quickly went online to post their own opinions and comments.

Clearly, they weren’t surprised that Huang Chong had lost to Pogačar for now, nor did they consider it a disgrace.

During the post-race interviews, an official reporter for the Liège Race naturally interviewed Pogačar first, asking him directly:

"Congratulations, Tadej, on winning the world’s oldest Classic race once again. Tell us your thoughts on today’s race!"

Pogačar smiled and replied:

"Thank you. First of all, it was a very tough race. The temperature was low, and my opponents were very strong.

I had to give it everything I had for the entire ride.

Luckily, my legs felt good today, so I was able to secure the win without any mishaps!"

"Yes, we all saw you launch your attack on Fortress Mountain, with about 35km left in the race, and you maintained that lead all the way to the end. It was truly a spectacular display of attacking!

But I’m curious, when you broke away on Fortress Mountain and saw that a rider was still sticking with you, were you a bit surprised by that outcome?

Especially since it was a rookie who just joined the World Tour this year!

I assume you know this Bora cyclist by now?"

"Of course. To be honest, after I dropped Carapaz, I thought Huang Chong from the Bora Team would get dropped too.

After all, we’d already been riding for 220km at that point.

But unexpectedly, he was exceptionally tenacious, and his performance on the steep climbs was outstanding. That definitely exceeded my expectations.

So, after Fortress Mountain, I went all out to keep him from sticking with me all the way to the final climb, Eagle’s Beak Mountain."

"Judging by the results, your tactical execution was flawless.

But in your opinion, with Huang Chong of the Bora Team showing such powerful and consistent strength in his very first season, do you think he’ll become your biggest rival in the future?

Also, if he continues to develop, do you think he’ll become another opponent in the Classics who is as tough to shake as Jonas?"