Ben Healy’s progress had been apparent all Spring, but the true breakout display came at the Amstel Gold Race, where the Irishman took second place behind Tadej Pogačar after dropping his old teammate Tom Pidcock in the finale.
The three podium finishers were all part of a move that went clear with some 90km remaining, and Healy and Pidcock were the last men standing when Pogacar began running through his scales in earnest on the Eyserbosweg.
Pogacar overwhelmed Healy and Pidcock on the Keutenberg with 29km to go, but the pair combined to give chase over the other side. After Pidcock tried and failed to shake off Healy on the final haul up the Cauberg, the EF Education-EasyPost rider responded in kind by distancing him on the Geulhemmerberg.
“I knew I had good legs, and I knew I had to ride a smart race to finish second behind Pogacar today,” Healy said afterwards. “That’s what I did, and it paid off in the end.”
Indeed, Healy closed to within 20 seconds of Pogacar shortly after his late attack, though the Slovenian pulled away again soon afterwards. The slipstream afforded to Pogacar by the race director’s car at that moment drew the understandable frustration of EF manager Jonathan Vaughters, though that will likely be tempered by satisfaction at Healy’s display.
“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,” said Healy, who came home 38 seconds down on Pogacar.
“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.”
The 22-year-old started his season with some strong displays at the Challenge Mallorca before picking up two wins on Italian roads, landing the GP Industria & Artigianato di Larciano and a stage of the Settimana Coppi e Bartali.
After placing fifth at the Région Pays de la Loire Tour, Healy went on take second behind Dorian Godon at Brabantse Pijl in midweek, before shining at WorldTour level on Sunday. With Neilson Powless still in the main peloton, Healy had a reason to contribute sparingly when the decisive move began to take shape with 90km to go.
“I think I was quietly confident,” Healy said of his mindset. “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.”
Healy turned professional with EF last year after two seasons with Trinity Racing. His under-23 career yielded stage wins at the Tour de l’Avenir, the Ronde de l’Isard and the Baby Giro, and he is now beginning to show an aptitude for the big occasion as a professional.
“Amstel is something that definitely suits me, and the wet, rainy days are something I also like,” said Healy, who will line up among the men to watch at La Flèche Wallonne and Liège-Bastogne-Liège.
His display on Sunday, however, was less of a surprise to man who came home behind him in third place.
“I know how strong Ben is, I raced with him at Trinity when I was younger and he helped me win the Baby Giro, so I know how good he is,” Pidcock said. “Maybe it’s not a surprise to me, but it’s nice to see him at the front as well.”
