Immediately after his epic ride to 2nd place in Amstel Gold Race today, Ben Healy was using one word, repeatedly, to describe his day: surreal. It was hardly surprising considering what the 22-year-old EF Education-EasyPost rider had just done.
He initially forged clear in the near 20-rider front group with about 90km to go when Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates) went to the front and squeezed on the pedals. When Pogačar trimmed that group back to 11 later in the race, Healy was there again.
And when the final cut was made - Pogačar doing the damage once more - just two riders were able to match him; Healy and Tom Pidcock (Ineos Grenadiers). Even being in that company was a fantastic ride for Healy. But he is now emerging as a major force in pro cycling and after Pogačar had gone solo on the Keutenberg with about 28km remaining, Healy was soon dropping Pidcock. In that moment - with about 15km to go - we perhaps got our first glimpse of the scale of Healy's ambition and his ability.
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Far from being content to work with Pidcock for the remainder of the race, and guarantee a podium placing, Healy wanted to hurt Pidcock when he sensed a weakness and so guarantee 2nd place for himself. And that's exactly what he did. Though Pogačar was already over 40 seconds up the road, Healy began eating into that lead. And it wasn't until the two-time Tour de France winner was told the Irishman was closing on him that he picked up the pace to ensure no comeback from Healy.
In the end Pogačar won by 38 seconds from Healy, with Pidcock in 3rd at 2:14. It was an incredible day out for the young Irishman. And though he has already been very successful this season - with two wins among a string of results - Amstel Gold on April 16th, 2023, will always be remembered as the day he crossed over into the big time.
“I knew I had good legs," Healy said after the race. "And I knew I had to ride a smart race to finish second behind Pogačar today. That’s what I did, and it paid off in the end. I was second, only to the best rider in the world at the moment, so it was a pretty good day, I think.
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“His team rode pretty hard straight from the gun. They didn’t give the break any leash, so honestly it was just trying to stay in the first 30 or 40 guys for the whole day. It was just a whittling process.
"And then with about 100 kilometers to go, it pressed on over a climb, and the elastic which had been going all day snapped, and I went with the group. I played the card and sat on the back, because we had Neilson (Powless) behind. As we started racing, guys got dropped, and it turned out I was one of the strongest.”
When he dropped Pidcock, Healy was closing in on Pogačar, though it looked like the race leader had the benefit of being towed a little by a number of vehicles, including the race director's car. Afterwards, Healy seemed pleased he was able to keep Pogačar honest all the way to the line.
“The gap came down when I attacked a little bit, but he was clearly holding something in reserve. But it was nice all the same," he said. “It was pretty surreal. When you’re racing with a couple of the best riders in the world and when you’re able to follow them, you think, ‘Whoa, the legs must be good today.' And then when I dropped Tom as well, it was a pretty surreal moment.”
Healy said he was "quietly confident” going into today's race especially considering how hard he rode - and how strong he was - in taking 2nd place at De Brabantse Pijl midweek.
“I rode a very aggressive race at Brabantse, but with a few bigger names here, I knew I’d get the luxury of maybe missing a few turns – which is what I did. And it played to my advantage in the end. Amstel is something that definitely suits me, and the wet, rainy days are something I also like."
