Teams & Riders Tadej Pogačar discussion thread

[Charlyghoul]

Sure, San Remco and Roubaix are his huge career goals. Vuelta has been marginalized for years.

Yeah, we basically know he can win Vuelta, it’s not really as important for his legacy

 

[Cycling111]

He skipped Flandres in 2024 because he was doing the Giro. In 2022, 2023 and 2025 he did Flandres and I doubt it'll change next year. It would make more sense to skip Roubaix but he's too obsessed with it so the cobbles double is on the cards again.

For me, the adjustments he would have to make to be able to do the Vuelta:

- No UAE Tour. It seems insignificant, but he had to bring forward his debut weeks compared to 2024 because of that shitty race.

- No Strade. One week less and he avoids potential incidents. He's won it three times. Flanders is different because it's used for training on cobblestone ground.

- MSR debut.
- A preparation race: E3.
- De Ronde.
- Paris-Roubaix

Rest. Altitud camp.

- Dauphine
- Tour
- Vuelta
- WC (Canada next year).
- Lombardia

 

[Shortcut]

For me, the adjustments he would have to make to be able to do the Vuelta:

- No UAE Tour. It seems insignificant, but he had to bring forward his debut weeks compared to 2024 because of that shitty race.

- No Strade. One week less and he avoids potential incidents. He's won it three times. Flanders is different because it's used for training on cobblestone ground.

- MSR debut.
- A preparation race: E3.
- De Ronde.
- Paris-Roubaix

Rest. Altitud camp.

- Dauphine
- Tour
- Vuelta
- WC (Canada next year).
- Lombardia

It's not bad but Dauphine is out of question. Also not riding LBL would be too much sacrifice for Vuelta. He didn't go to Vuelta this year because Rwanda WC(both TT and RR) is just tooooo suited for him. Also Jonas will not be going to Vuelta next year, so he can do it even if tired.

 

[Cycling111]

It's not bad but Dauphine is out of question. Also not riding LBL would be too much sacrifice for Vuelta. He didn't go to Vuelta this year because Rwanda WC(both TT and RR) is just tooooo suited for him. Also Jonas will not be going to Vuelta next year, so he can do it even if tired.

I'm including the Dauphine because he can't go to the Tour de France without racing from Paris-Roubaix. I think the absence of competition is detrimental to a GT. To have the Autumn I've suggested, he has to minimize the spring. Only De Ronde and Roubaix require special preparation and being in great shape.

To do the Vuelta, he would have to invest what he's done this year, few days in spring to have a full schedule in the second half of the season.

 

[Shortcut]

I'm including the Dauphine because he can't go to the Tour de France without racing from Paris-Roubaix. I think the absence of competition is detrimental to a GT. To have the Autumn I've suggested, he has to minimize the spring. Only De Ronde and Roubaix require special preparation and being in great shape.

To do the Vuelta, he would have to invest what he's done this year, few days in spring to have a full schedule in the second half of the season.

I get your point but he can do Romandie/Suisse/Slovenia and i doubt he will race Dauphine ever again. But also he will not skip LBL. Remco got lucky with those two LBLs (also OGRR) because of Pogi and he will not let him get another one. It would be like MvDP skipping MSR because he would want perfect preparation for Ronde.

 

[Cycling111]

I get your point but he can do Romandie/Suisse/Slovenia and i doubt he will race Dauphine ever again. But also he will not skip LBL. Remco got lucky with those two LBLs (also OGRR) because of Pogi and he will not let him get another one. It would be like MvDP skipping MSR because he would want perfect preparation for Ronde.

For Tour-Vuelta, Dauphine is better. Switzerland is a week later. It would be better if he didn't go to Dauphine as strong as he did this year. This year he would have won if he was in less shape.
Vingegaard has done the Dauphine, and Vingegaard won't be doing either the World Championships or Lombardia. And besides, Vingegaard had a less competitive spring.

Pogacar isn't going to give up on the World Championships in Canada. So the best option is the Dauphine instead of Switzerland.
It's a better combination.

This year we haven't been able to see Almeida's results because of the accident, but I think that having done Switzerland-Tour-Vuelta, he would have arrived exhausted for the Vuelta.

 

[Krzysztof_O]

I'm including the Dauphine because he can't go to the Tour de France without racing from Paris-Roubaix. I think the absence of competition is detrimental to a GT. To have the Autumn I've suggested, he has to minimize the spring. Only De Ronde and Roubaix require special preparation and being in great shape.

To do the Vuelta, he would have to invest what he's done this year, few days in spring to have a full schedule in the second half of the season.

Instead of Dauphine he can go to Tour of SLOVEnia and race against semi-amateurs and autograph-seekers.

 

[Cycling111]

Instead of Dauphine he can go to Tour of SLOVEnia and race against semi-amateurs and autograph-seekers.

It would be another option, but it's always good to compete against rivals and knowing what you're up against. We've seen cases of runners who sweep .1 races and then collapse in important races due to overconfidence or thinking their numbers are better than they actually are. I don't think about anyone

It's better to have a major preparation race. In other years, he did Slovenia, but he'd done one-week races in the spring and stage race preparation throughout the year.

 

[Peyroteo94]

For me, the adjustments he would have to make to be able to do the Vuelta:

- No UAE Tour. It seems insignificant, but he had to bring forward his debut weeks compared to 2024 because of that shitty race.

- No Strade. One week less and he avoids potential incidents. He's won it three times. Flanders is different because it's used for training on cobblestone ground.

- MSR debut.
- A preparation race: E3.
- De Ronde.
- Paris-Roubaix

Rest. Altitud camp.

- Dauphine
- Tour
- Vuelta
- WC (Canada next year).
- Lombardia

No mate.
SB
MSR
RVV
PR
LBL

Perfect spring schedule. He already showed he doesn't need to race E3 or GW to win RVV.

 

[Peyroteo94]

For Tour-Vuelta, Dauphine is better. Switzerland is a week later. It would be better if he didn't go to Dauphine as strong as he did this year. This year he would have won if he was in less shape.
Vingegaard has done the Dauphine, and Vingegaard won't be doing either the World Championships or Lombardia. And besides, Vingegaard had a less competitive spring.

Pogacar isn't going to give up on the World Championships in Canada. So the best option is the Dauphine instead of Switzerland.
It's a better combination.

This year we haven't been able to see Almeida's results because of the accident, but I think that having done Switzerland-Tour-Vuelta, he would have arrived exhausted for the Vuelta.

We can't compare Pogacar with any other rider. He can do whatever he wants

 

[Cycling111]

We can't compare Pogacar with any other rider. He can do whatever he wants

No, which is why he hasn't done the Vuelta. He also has his limits.
He needs to adjust his schedule.

 

[Cycling111]

No mate.
SB
MSR
RVV
PR
LBL

Perfect spring schedule. He already showed he doesn't need to race E3 or GW to win RVV.

I'm including E3 because of the pace of the competition. He's had other races this year. With that spring, he won't be doing Tour-Vuelta-WC.

 

[Peyroteo94]

No, which is why he hasn't done the Vuelta. He also has his limits.
He needs to adjust his schedule.

This is why he should do:
SB
MSR
RVV
PR
LBL
Slovenia
TdF
Vuelta
WC
GdL

 

[Krzysztof_O]

No mate.
SB
MSR
RVV
PR
LBL

Perfect spring schedule. He already showed he doesn't need to race E3 or GW to win RVV.

This one is good. Pogi doesn't even need stage races to be ready for a stage race. He will spend half of the spring in his chamber in Monaco and the other half on training camps/races.

 

[Peyroteo94]

This one is good. Pogi doesn't even need stage races to be ready for a stage race. He will spend half of the spring in his chamber in Monaco and the other half on training camps/races.

5 race days + 5 race days in Slovenia before the Tour+Vuelta.

 

[Berniece]

Trying to win Roubaix and Flanders and winning the tour no wonder Pogi is tired.
Even Merckx only won Roubaix or Flanders once in tour winning years.

In case of Flanders this was because it was 100 times easier compared to now. There were like 2 hills on the whole course. He would've won Flanders 7 times if it was like now.

 

[Salvarani]

Tour-Vuelta combo... he has to skip cobbles in the spring and race lighter there.

Doing Slovenia? Cmon. That would be detraining.

And he really doesnt have to two GTs, unless he really wants to but has to know he has to sacrifice other races if so.

Having this break in August makes him be able to recover and go for every other important race there is, bar the Vuelta (and Giro of course).

Easy trade to do, when you can win all the monuments + Tour + worlds. Just run it up for as long as you can.

 

[Charlyghoul]

In case of Flanders this was because it was 100 times easier compared to now. There were like 2 hills on the whole course. He would've won Flanders 7 times if it was like now.

Who would, Pogi or Merckx ?

 

[Cycling111]

I didn't remember that next year the Vuelta starts in Monaco.

 

[Berniece]

Who would, Pogi or Merckx ?

Merckx. De Ronde wasn't as hard and difficult as it is now.

 

[Charlyghoul]

Merckx. De Ronde wasn't as hard and difficult as it is now.

Yes quite right and I still reckon Merckx had at least as good a competition in the grand tours and better competition in the monuments.
I’d like to see Pog win a Roubaix and San remo and two tours and an hour record and then we can start to discuss his goat credentials

 

[Cycling111]

He's going to win by a bigger margin than last year. Have you changed your mind since Quebec?

He always struggles to get into shape at the first race after the Tour.

 

[Peyroteo94]

He's going to win by a bigger margin than last year. Have you changed your mind since Quebec?

He always struggles to get into shape at the first race after the Tour.

I don't think he will win

 

[Cycling111]

I don't think he will win

But he could, and for longer advantage than last year.

 

[Cycling111]

Well, he's going to give a race to a guy who hasn't wanted to be a domestique in the Tour for three years and who did top10 in the Giro without helping Del Toro.

He would have given it to Narvaez, who has been a better teammate in just one year.