An underdog label can sound like a tactical advantage, but it is not a race plan on its own. In a World Championships road race, the useful distinction is between being less closely watched and having a real chance to act on that extra room. Those are not automatically the same thing: a rider still has to read the moves and choose when to commit. That makes the small-nation angle interesting without treating it as a built-in edge.
It seems more useful to judge the idea by what other teams do in the race than to assume the jersey decides anything. For riders from smaller nations, does being overlooked create usable space to make a move, or is the supposed advantage mostly a story we tell after the result?
Being overlooked can buy a rider a little rope, but a small Worlds squad may not have anyone spare to cover the next counter or help control the gap. Then the rider spends that opening bridging or defending it alone. Pogacar drawing attention can loosen the race for an opportunist; it doesn't make the move cheaper to sustain. A window, not a Latvia bonus.
That window can shut quickly. Pogacar’s presence only helps while the other teams are spending their attention on him. Once Skujins is up the road and looks dangerous, they can chase him just fine; Latvia doesn’t get a free pass.
