McNulty takes victory and overall lead in Croatia

Arrieta second as UAE make it 1-2

Brandon McNulty took his 8th victory of the year on a rain-soaked finish to stage 3 at the CRO Race in Croatia today.

The American showed his quality and determination to attack 41km from the line, initially being joined by Kim Heiduk (Ineos) before going solo to build over a minute lead on the main peloton.

Due to strong winds and a road closures, the start was moved from Otocac to Novi Vinodolski, making the stage 64.5 km shorter than initially planned. The time for the GC was taken at the entrance of the finish circuit, at 11.5 km from the finish.

Igor Arrieta was second to cross the line at 34” to take home an impressive 1-2 for the Emirati outfit which now sees McNulty put on the red leaders jersey heading into stage 4.

McNulty: “Today was a really good day , I felt strong. Things were a bit confusing with the race shortened but I found myself in a move off the front and just decided to push on. Then the gap held and kept going for the stage and managed to keep the margin. I'm really happy with the race and hopefully we can defend the lead until the end.”

Stage 3 results

1.Brandon McNulty (UAE Team Emirates) 1:47:23

2.Igor Arrieta (UAE Team Emirates) +34”

3.Tobias Lund Andresen (DSM Firmenich) s.t

General classification after stage 3

1.Brandon McNulty (UAE Team Emirates) 1:47:23

2.Giovanni Lonardi (Polti Kometa) +30”

3.Tobias Lund Andresen (DSM Firmenich) s.t

Next up for UAE Team Emirates is the Giro Dell'Emilia (Saturday 5th October), where Tadej Pogačar will lead the line fresh from his recent success at the World Championships in Zurich. The squad features an ensemble of climbing talent who are warming up ahead of Il Lombardia, where the Slovenian will hope to defend his title from 2023 where he claimed a memorable victory into Bergamo

Pogačar: “This period of the year is always one of my favourites for racing and it will be even more special now with the World Champions jersey on my back. What happened in Zurich was a dream for me. Whatever happens from here on is a plus but given the amazing season we've had as a team we want to push right until the last race and end on a high note. These end of year classics in Italy are beautiful, exciting races and we're ready to give them a good shot.”