Chapter 314 - 172: Look at This Kid from the East, He Now Wins as Easily as Taking Something From His Pocket

His job was to feed his core commander live race data, down to the last detail.

After hearing the cue, Huang Chong subconsciously touched his nose, then even took a moment to bend down and tighten his clipless shoes.

When cruising on the flats, he usually didn’t fasten his clipless shoes too tightly.

But for a Sprinting Burst, the shoes had to be snug against his feet, with no room to spare.

When the leaders of the other teams saw his movements, they all knew what it meant.

The kid was clearly getting ready to attack.

’But what could they do?’

Zwiehoff and Buchman had been pushing the pace with everything they had since the foot of the climb!

To avoid being dropped, they had to match the duo’s pace. But this had taken a massive toll on every one of them—

The Bora Team’s tactic was as obvious as playing with an open hand. It gave the others no chance to reach the summit with Huang Chong and contest a sprint.

So they had only two choices. Either try to follow when Huang Chong attacked...

...or play it safe, let Huang Chong go solo, and chase him as a group, praying he couldn’t hold the effort for the final 3km and would blow up on the climb.

But just as he’d promised, the moment the race hit the final 3km and the gradient steepened to 8.1%, Huang Chong shot out from behind Buchman, launching his attack out of the saddle.

He instantly shot away from the peloton. However, the two leaders of the UAE Team, Ulissi and Hirschi, didn’t react at all. They stuck to their own pace and simply let him go.

’Are you kidding?’ They had raced against Huang Chong so many times. At both the Milan-Turin Race and the Frankfurt Grand Prix, he had instantly dropped them on the steep climbs. They knew exactly what he was capable of.

’Chasing him would be pure stupidity!’

But the leader of the Trek Team, Thibaut Nis, had clearly not raced against Huang Chong enough. He immediately responded to the attack.

He was the only rider to do so.

The local Hungarian commentators broadcasting the race live were stunned when they saw this.

As commentators, they had of course analyzed the roster for the highest-level road race ever held in their country. They knew the riders like the back of their hand.

If you asked who the biggest star at this year’s Tour of Hungary was, the answer would undoubtedly be Mark Cavendish, who they had pulled on stage for a solo interview during the opening ceremony.

But if you asked who the top favorite for the general classification was, they also knew the answer to that. It was definitely the Bora cyclist who had exploded onto the scene, stood out from all the other rookies on the World Tour, and absolutely dominated the Spring Classics: Huang Chong.

They also regularly watched the World Tour and even broadcasted it to the nation on the Hungarian Sports Channel. They had personally commentated on many of Huang Chong’s victories in top-tier races, like Crossing Flanders and the Flèche Wallonne!

Therefore, they knew full well that unless a rider was absolutely confident in their climbing ability, sticking their neck out from the peloton to rashly counter Huang Chong’s attack was not a rational move.

"Huang Chong of the Bora Team has launched his attack! We’re about 3km from the finish line!!"

It looks like he’s chosen to attack much earlier than the final kilometer we were anticipating—

Thibaut Nis of the Trek Team has responded immediately!!

But the UAE riders in the white kits seem completely unfazed.

They’re staying right in the peloton, setting a steady pace of their own—"

"Thibaut Nis is the only rider who chose to respond to Huang Chong. You have to admire his courage, but I think it’s a bit of a reckless move!"

"I agree with you, my friend. After all, Huang Chong’s climbing ability is just so exceptional. But I have to admit, I’m sincerely hoping Thibaut Nis can hang on until the end. It would make the race much more exciting!"

...

However, before the two commentators on the Hungarian Sports Channel could even finish their exchange, Huang Chong was still accelerating up the 8.1% grade. Seeing a Trek cyclist daring to chase him, he decisively shifted from his steady, seated 450-watt threshold effort, got back out of the saddle, and put in another anaerobic burst.

Thibaut Nis was young and hot-headed, with a reckless streak.

That was normal, though. What professional athlete didn’t have a bit of a temper?

’In any case, I’ve already committed to the attack. No turning back now.’ Seeing Huang Chong continue to pump out of the saddle, he stood up and followed suit.

But after following Huang Chong’s pace for two hundred meters during that sustained, 600-watt surge, the bigger-bodied rider suddenly realized something was wrong. His heart rate was so high he could barely breathe, and his legs felt like they were filled with lead!

The realization struck Thibaut Nis with alarm.

He knew exactly what this change in his body meant.

It was the unmistakable sign of lactic acid flooding his system after a prolonged anaerobic effort. He was being dropped—hard—by Huang Chong.

In contrast, Huang Chong’s lean figure up ahead was still dancing on the pedals, his stamina seemingly endless!

Once a rider runs out of energy on a steep climb, there’s no time or opportunity to recover.

And so, with his face a mask of pain, Thibaut Nis was dropped in an instant, unable to follow Huang Chong any longer.

As he dropped back into his saddle, he could no longer even hold a straight line on the 8.1% grade. He could only weave from side to side, snaking his way up the road—