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Teams & Riders Tadej Pogačar discussion thread

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I think, Pogacar wants to improve in those races. This year he won everything what he should except maybe WC. Strade, LBL, Giro, Catalunya and Montreal who was actually there to challenge him? Lombardia, Emilia where Remco and Roglic looked already tired after everything what happened this season and Tour where everybody came after big crashes except Pogi. He looked really disapointed after Quebec and MSR and he said it too. WC is other story and that is also why he looked so happy after finish line. Flanders 2023 and WC 2024 are also only races where i have see him being crazy happy and totally on the limit.

Pogacar's focus is on attritional races and climbs. This is the way to win GTs and monuments and to build his legacy. I actually think his explosivity on very short/shallow climbs may get worse (or already did this year). Not expecting him to get better in MSR like races, unless he improves his descending (which is ok but not at the level of some MSR contenders).
 
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Pogacar's focus is on attritional races and climbs. This is the way to win GTs and monuments and to build his legacy. I actually think his explosivity on very short/shallow climbs may get worse (or already did this year). Not expecting him to get better in MSR like races, unless he improves his descending (which is ok but not at the level of some MSR contenders).
I agree with the general point. As for MSR, I think the only thing he needs is a team that works perferctly. Good for Pog that jokers like Ulissi and Hirschi are gone. They can now mount a fully committed big-boy train on the climbs. McNulty, Bjerg, Del Torro, Wellens, and Narvaez together with Novak and Politt should do the job. Narvaez is a fantastic signing in this regard.
 
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I agree with the general point. As for MSR, I think the only thing he needs is a team that works perferctly. Good for Pog that jokers like Ulissi and Hirschi are gone. They can now mount a fully committed big-boy train on the climbs. McNulty, Bjerg, Del Torro, Wellens, and Narvaez together with Novak and Politt should do the job. Narvaez is a fantastic signing in this regard.

Narvaez is great, I agree. Maybe Pog will get some separation on Poggio but with MVP in the race (most explosive short climbs rider and excellent descender) it's always tricky to pull off. Every year is different though and with enough number of tries Pog may get MSR one day. He still has a lot of time to get the monkey off his back and undoubtedly he will try every year.
 
Narvaez is great, I agree. Maybe Pog will get some separation on Poggio but with MVP in the race (most explosive short climbs rider and excellent descender) it's always tricky to pull off. Every year is different though and with enough number of tries Pog may get MSR one day. He still has a lot of time to get the monkey off his back and undoubtedly he will try every year.
I agree. Also, MVDP may not target MSR in the coming years. He seem to be more of a wildcard in his preparation for each season with CX. RVV and P-R seem to be way more important peaks for him.
 
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Pogacar's focus is on attritional races and climbs. This is the way to win GTs and monuments and to build his legacy. I actually think his explosivity on very short/shallow climbs may get worse (or already did this year). Not expecting him to get better in MSR like races, unless he improves his descending (which is ok but not at the level of some MSR contenders).
Where did you see this? San Vito?
 
Pogacar succeeded in some races because other riders chose not to take him on directly. Not all events but the Giro was a sad promenade behind him. The Tour was a closer reality for about 2 weeks and then everyone settled into their petty fights for the lower placings. So, yes; if they do that in 2025 the results could be the same.
They will all start out healthy save for the unknowns of Vindegaard's recovery to form. That could take some time and, if it does Visma will need to be realistic and pick a #1 rider that they'll give full support.
Right, but had they taken him on they would have blown up. He that flies to close to the sun gets incinerated.
 
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Pogacar succeeded in some races because other riders chose not to take him on directly. Not all events but the Giro was a sad promenade behind him. The Tour was a closer reality for about 2 weeks and then everyone settled into their petty fights for the lower placings. So, yes; if they do that in 2025 the results could be the same.
They will all start out healthy save for the unknowns of Vindegaard's recovery to form. That could take some time and, if it does Visma will need to be realistic and pick a #1 rider that they'll give full support.
What races?
 
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Right, but had they taken him on they would have blown up. He that flies to close to the sun gets incinerated.
Better to give it a shot than accept staying in the field for top 20 in my book. But I raced like an amateur against pros so no dignity was lost when it came to nothing. It also gave me some breathrough results which the current state of the peloton desperately needs to counter Pogacar.
 
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WCRR was a great example of dithering and excuses. Several American riders killed themselves to be in the mix and Ben O'Conner surprised all of us. Are those guys better than MvP, Remco, Wout....?

But if it wasn't for Pogacar none of the riders you mentioned would win.
It would be probably someone from the big break.
Pogacar was clearly better than MvP (he couldn't even catch Healy and Skujins) and Remco. So the best rider won the race.
Could he be beaten? Of course if everyone rode together to beat him. But such situations rarely occur in cycling.
 
They were all dead! Pogacar won by sheer power.
His move was way early in the event and the efforts I saw from Remco were half-assed and involved much jawing at other guys to pull through. On an uphill pursuit you don't just stop working because you don't have alot of help. Remco's credentials would have him locking down in an effort he could sustain to reduce the gap. He didn't seem to do much of that from the highlighted broadcast segments I saw. Very much like the situation he won his own Worlds' RR. That, and he might have been tired and satisfied from winning 2 Olympic Golds.
That Oly RR was won pretty much like Tadej won the World's so there's that to consider.
 
But if it wasn't for Pogacar none of the riders you mentioned would win.
It would be probably someone from the big break.
Pogacar was clearly better than MvP (he couldn't even catch Healy and Skujins) and Remco. So the best rider won the race.
Could he be beaten? Of course if everyone rode together to beat him. But such situations rarely occur in cycling.
Like when Remco won his Rainbow stripes. Just like that....
 
So MSR, Dauphiné and Vuelta will be in his racing program
No we cant conclude on that. He knows he can win dauphine & vuelta on one leg even in his 30's he is particularly talking about sanremo where he will be in the shape of his life. The key person in that race is jasper philipsen, he is the one who decides the races outcome. When pog attacks on cipressa only mvdp can follow and he will probably be on his limit & if jasper is in the race he will not work with pog but if he isnt he has to work on the valley & pog drops him easy on poggio
 
No we cant conclude on that. He knows he can win dauphine & vuelta on one leg even in his 30's he is particularly talking about sanremo where he will be in the shape of his life. The key person in that race is jasper philipsen, he is the one who decides the races outcome. When pog attacks on cipressa only mvdp can follow and he will probably be on his limit & if jasper is in the race he will not work with pog but if he isnt he has to work on the valley & pog drops him easy on poggio
The "key person" is MVDP.
 
The "key person" is MVDP.
Not really, for 2024 pog there is no direct rival & on flanders we will see clear & laugh on the best classics riders in mvdp,wva& pederson when he sweeps them away by 3 minutes. His biggest & only rival(indirect) for 2025 season is philipsen b/c he would be the only one who could snatch a win from pog or make other riders win by making sanremo a tactical race. I will be incredibly surprised If mvdp takes the gamble of working with pog in the valley down cipressa with poggio ahead.
 
TBH I'm not sure about this. I just think I saw more powerful accelerations by him in the previous years. I'm not talking about 3-5 minutes efforts, more about a few dozens of seconds efforts (Z6). His aerobic engine has been so superior this year and it seems logical that his anaerobic power/capacity should be reduced a bit.
So it is a feeling. I think he didn't get worse. There were plenty of races where he completely shattered the race with his acceleration.
 
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