Pogačar wins Flèche Wallonne, Healy fights hard on Mur de Huy | Video | Sticky Bottle

*Tadej Pogačar of UAE Team Emirates celebrates winning *La Flèche Wallonne* on the top of Mur de Huy (Photo:* *Billy Ceusters)*

Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates) has continued his rampage through the 2023 season with victory today in La Flèche Wallonne, his second Ardennes Classics win in four days after claiming Amstel Gold Race at the weekend.

The man who pushed him closest in the Netherlands on Sunday, Ireland's Ben Healy (EF Education-EasyPost), looked like he was well positioned coming into the Mur de Huy for the finish today, though slipped back a little as the brutally steep climb began.

In the end, the 22-year-old Irish rider, making his second appearance in this race, finished in 32nd place, some 22 seconds down on the winner.

And though other riders tried their luck on the earlier slopes of the climb, once Pogačar surged forward the race was over, though runner-up Mattias Skjelmose (Trek-Segafredo) keep him honest all the way to the line of the 194.3km World Tour race.

With just under 7km to go, and the last of the early breakaway men only 15 seconds up the road, UAE Team Emirates hit the front on a Côte de Cherave, a 1.3km climb averaging 7.6 per cent gradient. As the pace of the UAE Team Emirates riders was felt by the remains of the main field, Healy moved towards the front of the strung out peloton and into the wheel of Tadej Pogačar.

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After the climb, which failed to split the field, just one breakaway man -Louis Vervaeke of Soudal-Quick Step - remained dangling off the front, persisting with his move though he just had a handful of seconds.

UAE Team Emirates - under the steam of Diego Ulissi - continued to lead the main field, clearly hoping Pogačar or his team mate Marc Hirschi, who won La Flèche Wallonne in 2020, could take victory.

However, lone leader Vervaeke added to his advantage a little, though his hopes looked doomed to fail the moment the race hit the Mur de Huy for the back-breaking climb up to the line.

The moment the riders hit the climb, Vervaeke was caught and Magus Sheffield (Ineos Grenadiers) took up the pace-setting on the front, for his leader Tom Pidcock, as Healy had fallen back through the group and was down to about 20th wheel.

With just over 200m to go, Romain Bardet (Team DSM) made a move to the front, with Pidcock initially trying to move after him. However, Pogačar then stepped up and open the throttle, pulling clear to win from Mattias Skjelmose (Trek-Segafredo) and Mikel Landa (Bahrain Victorious).