Teams & Riders Tadej Pogačar discussion thread

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May 9, 2010
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He was top 5 in 3 of his last 4 grand tours and in the other he got ill. In the TDF last year he came in furthest from top form of all the GC contenders and still managed 5th place, if hadn't come out of lockdown in such poor condition he would have ended 3rd.
Mas is very consistent, but his top level is nowhere near Pogacar and Roglic. He's in a tier with Lopez, Landa etc.
 
Sep 2, 2011
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Who was the last rider to win a GT and a Monument before turning 23? Merckx?

Cunego had turned 23 one month before winning Lombardia in 2004.
 
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Jul 10, 2014
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Saw a lot of people in the LBL thread saying they could not like Tadej, well this might help


There is a real bro bond between Pogacar and Formolo

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Sep 2, 2011
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Yes, it's Merckx. And he was just 4 days shy of his 23rd birthday when he won his first Giro, so Pogacar is even younger than him.
Do you know of any other rider who was younger than 23?
I know Bartali was 22 and 4 months when winning Lombardia (having already won the Giro).

Hinault, Binda and Gimondi all did it at 23.
 
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Nov 23, 2020
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There is a real bro bond between Pogacar and Formolo

Ez1YIJCXsAQkz4T


Ez1YIJLWQAAj6NI
I really hope they keep Formolo in the team for the next years. I think his contract is ending this year.
I am sure Formolo was a bit disappointed still as this is his dream race to win. He had said in an italian interview beforehand he wanted to go his own chance.

He is a very loyal teammate though and so far has proven to be the biggest support for Tadej in UAE, Tirreno and Liege.

Being so young I think Tadej really needs to have riders around him like Formolo.

fun fact: formolo had decorated Tadejs appartment with yellow balloons and had made a yellow cake when he returned to Monaco...:hearteyes:
 
Nov 23, 2020
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He is very eager to do the Tour of Slovenia and to win. Because 3 participations and no podium, that should be put right :cool:

maybe the dauphine is a bit better suited to prepare for the tour, but I think Tadej really choses races he likes: strade, uae (he likes jebel hafeet), slovenia...

I think he will never become a rider solely focussed on the Tour. He seems to love racing and is way too ambitious for that.
 
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Apr 10, 2019
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He is very eager to do the Tour of Slovenia and to win. Because 3 participations and no podium, that should be put right :cool:

maybe the dauphine is a bit better suited to prepare for the tour, but I think Tadej really choses races he likes: strade, uae (he likes jebel hafeet), slovenia...

I think he will never become a rider solely focussed on the Tour. He seems to love racing and is way too ambitious for that.
With him flying from the UAE Tour until LBL it's probably smarter to do a shorter stage race (that is really important to him) with an easier route than the Dauphine. I'm also curious to see how he deals with the heat in a normal Tour, he has said before that he dislikes riding in the heat.
 
Apr 10, 2019
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I really hope they keep Formolo in the team for the next years. I think his contract is ending this year.
I am sure Formolo was a bit disappointed still as this is his dream race to win. He had said in an italian interview beforehand he wanted to go his own chance.

He is a very loyal teammate though and so far has proven to be the biggest support for Tadej in UAE, Tirreno and Liege.

Being so young I think Tadej really needs to have riders around him like Formolo.

fun fact: formolo had decorated Tadejs appartment with yellow balloons and had made a yellow cake when he returned to Monaco...:hearteyes:
The reason why Formolo hasn't raced from MSR until LBL is that he's doing Giro-Tour, so the team didn't want to overrrace him during the spring. Stagehunting at the Giro and riding as a domestique for Pogi at the Tour, Formolo can do lots of damage on a hilly stage or if you want someone to set a high pace on multiple longer climbs from the start of the stage.
 
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Nov 6, 2020
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He is very eager to do the Tour of Slovenia and to win. Because 3 participations and no podium, that should be put right :cool:

maybe the dauphine is a bit better suited to prepare for the tour, but I think Tadej really choses races he likes: strade, uae (he likes jebel hafeet), slovenia...

I think he will never become a rider solely focussed on the Tour. He seems to love racing and is way too ambitious for that.

I still think he will always do the Tour but will always do a second grand tour and multiple monuments.

I doubt he likes UAE tour, he is forced to race it as long as he races for the team.
 
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Oct 15, 2017
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He is very eager to do the Tour of Slovenia and to win. Because 3 participations and no podium, that should be put right :cool:

maybe the dauphine is a bit better suited to prepare for the tour, but I think Tadej really choses races he likes: strade, uae (he likes jebel hafeet), slovenia...

I think he will never become a rider solely focussed on the Tour. He seems to love racing and is way too ambitious for that.

Better to ride a race he is motivated for and wants to win in Slovenia infront of family, friends and local fans.

Dauphine always seem to take their victims too. Some contenders for the Tour usually ends up crashing out or gets dropped and lose minutes, showing no form. It is a pretty hectic race with a strong field and a lot of coverage around it. It really is like the mini-tour version. Might not be a bad idea to stay away from that circus for a little bit longer.
 
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Nov 23, 2020
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I assume that Pogacar like most riders enjoy the UAE Tour because they stay in the one hotel, so no travel between stages - This can't be under-estimated.
Yeah, he has said that he likes the organisation of the UAE tour. Nice hotel, good roads, a mountain...

It could also be a good race for him if he struggles with the heat a bit. I think in 2020 there was a stage where he lost time to Yates because he could not stand the heat (he won the next day or so though).

I think the Tour of Slovenia will be a good choice for him. He will have his family around which seems important to him. He will see a lot of old teammates/friends there. It means a lot for him to shine in Slovenia as his popularity is still quite low there. It will give him the relax environment to prepare for the Tour.
 
Nov 23, 2020
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This sounds weird, preparing for the Tour with the Tour of Slovenia... but since Roglic doesn't even do that one and other GT contenders skip preparation races completely... okay.

Not only preparing in the Tour of Slovenia, it is his goal to win it :cool:.

If he does, I think it will give him a very big boost for the Tour. Def when he can then add the national title too.
 
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Dec 2, 2020
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It could also be a good race for him if he struggles with the heat a bit. I think in 2020 there was a stage where he lost time to Yates because he could not stand the heat (he won the next day or so though).

It’s odd because he generally seems better the harder the conditions are. On that cold stage in TA he almost chased down MVDP’s 50k attack, and he almost seems to specialize in longer brutal stages and last week GT performances, but maybe the heat is finally a weakness.
 
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Jul 7, 2013
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You're kidding right? Pogi won the tour, he's the best gc rider in the world, evenepoel needs to prove what is capable of in grand tours.

Pog is a weakling. He only wins when Rog generously decides to have a bad day and donates a victory to his friend.
 
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