With a sprint and time trial behind them, the climbers of the UAE Tour peloton had the opportunity to come to the fore on Wednesday’s stage with the now traditional opening summit finish of Jebel Jais. Working well as a group throughout the day, Team dsm-firmenich PostNL kept GC finisher Max Poole safe and ensured they were always on the right side of any crosswind splits. Nothing fully materialised in the wind though and it became a race of attrition as the pace gradually increased on the climb and the bunch thinned down. After being well positioned by the team, Poole rode a measured effort and was strong in the finale, taking fourth place at the line from the peloton after O’Connor won the day with a late attack.
Poole said: “It was a nervous start with a chance for crosswinds but we did a really good job of riding sticking together as a unit. The boys did a great job of putting me in the front echelon when it split and when it eventually came back together we could regroup for the run-in to the climb. From there, I just focused on sitting back and holding a good position where I could use as little energy possible. We can be happy with the ride today after a good TT yesterday and look forward to the next few sprint opportunities before the last GC battle at the weekend.”