Tadej Pogacar took all the headlines after Saturday’s Milano-Sanremo, but further back in the bunch, others had their own stories to tell. For Corbin Strong, fifth place in a Monument was the perfect response to one of the most frustrating starts to a season he could have imagined.
Strong has had very little to celebrate in 2026. Crashes, mechanical problems and illness have plagued his campaign since January, leaving him with almost nothing to show for his efforts. Saturday changed that. Finishing just behind Mads Pedersen in the sprint for fourth, the New Zealander was understandably relieved.
“Yes, I am happy, I felt good. The team worked a lot and the guys were fantastic. I’ve had terrible bad luck since the start of the season, between crashes, mechanical problems and illness. So it’s really good to contest the finale of a race and even get a top five in a Monument, that’s really special,” he said after the finish in words gathered by
Cyclism Actu.
Corbin Strong has 8 professional wins in his career
Confusion in the peloton after Pogacar’s crash
Strong also offered an interesting inside view of the moment Pogacar went down with around 30 kilometres to go. From within the bunch, nobody really knew what was happening.
“In the Cipressa, I had a strange feeling because, with the way Pogacar crashed, nobody really understood what was going on. But everyone was just thinking about getting into the best position possible. Shortly after, UAE came back to the front of the peloton, and then…” he said, letting the rest speak for itself.
What followed is by now well known. Pogacar’s relentless attacks on the Poggio were too much for Van der Poel and left only Pidcock standing, before the Slovenian won by the narrowest of margins on the Via Roma. For Strong, simply being there at the end of it all, contesting the sprint for the minor places on one of cycling’s biggest stages, was more than enough after the months he has had.
