As was expected, Silvia Persico lined up her teammate Elisa Longo Borghini (UAE Team ADQ) perfectly for a win at the mountain stage of the UAE Tour Women 2025.
Longo Borghini claimed the red jersey comfortably ahead of Lorena Wiebes (SD Worx – Protime), but it was Persico's pace and positioning which stunned a few riders.
After attacking 5.5km from the top, Mavi Garcia (Liv AlUla Jayco) was then dropped thanks to Persico's relentless pace.
Garcia came third last year and was not overly pleased with the climb as she was feeling the effects of crashing yesterday.
"I think UAE put in a good rhythm up the climb, and wow, Silvia Persico also finished in the front and it's amazing," Garcia told Cyclingnews.
"I'm not 100% but I did my best. After the crash I don't feel really good, but my teammate Monica was really good today, she came fourth and I was trying to stay with her and tried to attack for her."
Riding also in the front group was Antonia Niedermaier (Canyon//SRAM Zondacrypto) who continues to impress following a stellar 2024 season where she came sixth overall at both the Giro d’Italia and Tour de Suisse.
Niedermaier couldn't follow Longo Borghini's attack but the German rider continues to ride strongly, and remains in the white jersey for the best young rider.
"The pace was pretty fast but steady which was good for me," Niedermaier said.
"The kick at 3km to go was hard and you could really feel it, but I'm quite happy with my performance.
"It was quite hectic to the climb and my teammates did a really good job by placing me perfectly."
Niedermaier's performance so far at the race bodes well for the rest of the season.
"It's quite nice to be in the jersey as it's the first race of the season and it's always good to know where you are standing," she said.
"It's a bit of a performance check and I see that I'm doing the right thing. I know I'm not on the top level right now but I'm getting there.
"I have a lot of big goals this year, like the Giro and the World Championships, and I want to see what I can do there."
