Tadei Pogachar put in another dominant performance in the queen stage of the Tirreno Adriatico in Monte Carpeña, pulling away from his rivals on the steep uphill to extend his overall lead to 1:52.

But despite the ease with which he achieved victory on Saturday afternoon, he remained humble and focused, insisting that he was not megalomaniac or infallible.

"I never consider myself invincible," said the leader of UAE Team Emirates. 'Even when I clear alone, someone might come back and catch up with me or attack me.'

"When I attack, I'll open the gas pedal all the way, but I don't know how it will end," he said modestly after his victory in Calpeña, seemingly more afraid of the cold than his competitors.

While Lemco Evenpole suffered from the cold and steep slopes, cracking and losing four minutes, Pogachar matched his teammate's pace with time to spare and made a solo attack midway up the second climb of Monte Carpeña.

Pogachar, who was deep into the 10 percent gradient that Marco Pantani excels at, gained a minute 3 kilometers before the summit and avoided taking risks on the winding descent to the finish village.

Everything was calculated, including Pogachar's use of a Colnago with rim brakes to save 300 grams. Pogachar's advantage was that he could race defensively even when he was attacking at the front.

"When Landa attacked, I followed, but he tried to change his rhythm. I didn't like that, so I responded with one good attack so that I could get to the top in my own rhythm," he said of the three key moments of the race.

"In this cold weather, I was on full gas. I got a little dizzy at the top and the descent was really hard, but I managed to stay on the bike. I was definitely at my limit

"The first time I went over the climb, Bahrain attacked at the top and caught me on the descent. I really didn't like it. I don't know why, but I risked crashing and breaking a bone, so I was pretty happy to be alone on the second downhill."

Two weeks ago, Pogachar took the overall win in the UAE Tour in the heat of the Middle East. Now he is racing in the freezing cold of early spring in the snow-covered Apennines of central Italy.

"The cold really affects my racing. When it's cold, you use more energy to warm yourself up, so it's extra tiring.

"Today was especially hard. It was 0 degrees at the top of Calpeña and it was super steep. It does a lot of damage to the muscles and is not healthy for the body. I adapt quickly, and although I don't like the cold, my body is more comfortable in the cold."

Pogachar is now one flat stage away from winning the Tirreno-Adriatico overall. He may never think he is invincible, but it seems so.

"I wanted to give back to my teammates. They led, set the pace, and kept me in control all day long.

"GC was close this morning. But we still have one more day. We need to stay focused and not make any mistakes.