Teams & Riders Tadej Pogačar discussion thread

[hayneplane]

It’s going to be an exciting season for Pog fans no matter what he and team management pick.

Remarkable that he would be favourite for every Grand Tour and the 7 big one week races as well as the Worlds Road Race. He will also be at least co-favourite for every monument including Paris-Roubaix if he adds it in after success elsewhere.

I hope he does another grand tour double either to emulate Indurain with back to back Giro-Tour doubles or Tour-Vuelta to join the select club to win all three Grand Tours.

Consecutive worlds wins have been done twice in the last decade by Sagan and Alaphillipe but win it this year with the most favourable parcours you will get and he can ride it in future years without any pressure as a free shot at palmares building.

Getting the tick in box for MSR will be huge for future projects as he can then either skip it or ride it without such a millstone round his neck.

 

[Peyroteo94]

It’s going to be an exciting season for Pog fans no matter what he and team management pick.

Remarkable that he would be favourite for every Grand Tour and the 7 big one week races as well as the Worlds Road Race. He will also be at least co-favourite for every monument including Paris-Roubaix if he adds it in after success elsewhere.

I hope he does another grand tour double either to emulate Indurain with back to back Giro-Tour doubles or Tour-Vuelta to join the select club to win all three Grand Tours.

Consecutive worlds wins have been done twice in the last decade by Sagan and Alaphillipe but win it this year with the most favourable parcours you will get and he can ride it in future years without any pressure as a free shot at palmares building.

Getting the tick in box for MSR will be huge for future projects as he can then either skip it or ride it without such a millstone round his neck.

MSR will be his kryptonite until his retirement. In fact, I don't see him ever winning it. I hope to be wrong.
Paris Roubaix is a matter of time, 2 more kilos of pure muscle and no one will be able to follow him.

 

[scribers]

Since 2026 and 2027 WC are tailormade for him and 2028 is an Olympic year, he should only attempt Tour-Vuelta in 2029? That's late.

Do we have access to the parcours for WC 26 and 27?

 

[James M]

I’d say the only reason it is “slowly” is it will take time to overhaul the great Eddy’s record. But I still doubt this. Crashes are most likely to stop him else motivation.

For 2025, I hope he targets Tour / Vuelta. Vingegaard seemed capable in 2023 if he wasn’t returning a favour to Sepp Kuss. If Vingo was capable then the 2024 version of Pog most certainly is.

Well records are just that, records. You dont rate Roglic over Vingegaard as a GT rider just cause he has won more GT?. I know your not but its a lazy argument based on favorisme imo its not black and white cause if it is Roglic is better GT rider than Vingegaard and that sums up how flawed that argument is cause he is not, unless people are able to difference betwen best and greatest which most who cares about that never are.

Its pretty obvious from everyones mouth that clearly Pogacar is the best of all time ive not heard a guy in cycling not say it. nvm that what we see speak for itself already and its not even remotely close though I completely agree with you he can win more to become the greatest for those who cares about that but it will always be a perception thing no matter what anyway(merckx rode in a era where cycling wasnt even 1/3 of how competitive it is today not trying to take anything away but it is what it is) , But yeah I agree with Evenepoel and you on the matter btw

 

[Froome]

He won a award for "Best performance in the 2024 season". Congrats GOAT for that legendary ride in Zurich!

Merckx was riding in Zurich some time ago.

 

[scribers]

I’d reply to that but I don’t want a timeout. Not with so much going on with cycling these days

 

[Lequack]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1853799623917289772

View: https://twitter.com/my_whoosh/status/1853799623917289772

Full episode is out now! Give it a listen.

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QRkeGiHXRs8

 

[rallybanana]

Since 2026 and 2027 WC are tailormade for him and 2028 is a Olympic year, he should only attempt Tour-Vuelta in 2029? That's late.

There's always the Horner option - wait until 2039

 

[hayneplane]

Since 2026 and 2027 WC are tailormade for him and 2028 is an Olympic year, he should only attempt Tour-Vuelta in 2029? That's late.

2028 Giro-Olympics-Vuelta might be the optimum schedule

 

[ZvitaFeltna]

He should win Vuelta and then focus on whatever he wants. Win all races bar PR and then focus on his favourite races

He should focus on Vuelta in 2028 when World's RR is in Abu Dhabi for the sprinters. 2025, 2026 and 2027 WRR are on terrain suitable for him and he should focus 100% next 3 years on that. Maybe this is his only chance to win.

 

[Peyroteo94]

He should focus on Vuelta in 2028 when World's RR is in Abu Dhabi for the sprinters. 2025, 2026 and 2027 WRR are on terrain suitable for him and he should focus 100% next 3 years on that. Maybe this is his only chance to win.

It's an Olympic year so no Vuelta.

 

[Peyroteo94]

May I remind some people Pogacar already won the WC road race? @ZvitaFeltna 2025,2026 and 2027 are not his only chance to win WC. He already won it! There are 3 races he must win to become the GOAT. MSR, PR and Vuelta.

 

[Froome]

May I remind some people Pogacar already won the WC road race? @ZvitaFeltna 2025,2026 and 2027 are not his only chance to win WC. He already won it! There are 3 races he must win to become the GOAT. MSR, PR and Vuelta.

Not enough.

Merckx won 19 monuments, 3 worlds, 11 Grand Tours.

525 victories.

 

[Salvarani]

He won a award for "Best performance in the 2024 season". Congrats GOAT for that legendary ride in Zurich!

Pog is the GOAT

One and only

🐐

 

[snipeheem]

Not enough.

Merckx won 19 monuments, 3 worlds, 11 Grand Tours.

525 victories.

Bill Russell GOAT 11 championships !!! Jordan who , Lebron who ?

 

[Peyroteo94]

Do we have access to the parcours for WC 26 and 27?

No but rumours are that 2026 WC will be hilly like GP Montreal and 2027 WC will be in the French Alps. They will not make a flat course there. It's even possible that we will have the hardest WC ever.

 

[KZD]

It's an Olympic year so no Vuelta.

Why not? The Olympics in 2028 will be held during July so Pogačar should have several weeks to prepare himself for the Vuelta.

Also if Pogačar wins the WCRR in the next three seasons, he will become the first rider ever to win it 4 times, which would make him even more of a legend. Meanwhile he just needs a single Vuelta win.

 

[Froome]

Bill Russell GOAT 11 championships !!! Jordan who , Lebron who ?

I talked about individual wins.

Besides that, Merckx is the most complete rider ever. He won PR and was beating pure sprinters.

 

[Peyroteo94]

Why not? The Olympics in 2028 will be held during July so Pogačar should have several weeks to prepare himself for the Vuelta.

Also if Pogačar wins the WCRR in the next three seasons, he will become the first rider ever to win it 4 times, which would make him even more of a legend. Meanwhile he just needs a single Vuelta win.

He will not win 4 consecutive WC. He can do it bur he doesn't have a solid team like Big Nations (France, Belgium, Italy, etc) to control easily the race. This year he attacked with 100 km to the finish line because he felt his team wasn't capable of closing that gap.

 

[KZD]

He will not win 4 consecutive WC. He can do it bur he doesn't have a solid team like Big Nations (France, Belgium, Italy, etc) to control easily the race. This year he attacked with 100 km to the finish line because he felt his team wasn't capable of closing that gap.

Well Slovakia had a worse team than Slovenia and Sagan manage to win it 3 times so I wouldn't rule out Pogi winning it 4 times. Even if he wins it 'just' 3 times, he would already equal Merckx and he can also get something like a WCTT or the Olympic RR gold too.

 

[Panda Claws]

Sagan's team was so bad that it became okay. Nobody could expect Slovakia to do any work at a WC.

 

[Peyroteo94]

Sagan's team was so bad that it became okay. Nobody could expect Slovakia to do any work at a WC.

This. And Sagan was a better sprinter than Pogacar. Pogacar has to drop everybody, other teams will not work with him and will try to antecipate Pogacar's attack

 

[Poursuivant]

MSR will be his kryptonite until his retirement. In fact, I don't see him ever winning it. I hope to be wrong.
Paris Roubaix is a matter of time, 2 more kilos of pure muscle and no one will be able to follow him.

I think after reading Pogacar saying “I am already thinking about MSR and trying something different,” it doesn’t take much imagination to mean he will launch on the Cipressa. I think that will be his best chance to win too.

 

[Peyroteo94]

Winning 3 WC is far easier in a team like Spain (Freire) or Belgium (Merckx) than Slovakia. So Sagan's palmares in WC is more impressive for me.

 

[Peyroteo94]

I think after reading Pogacar saying “I am already thinking about MSR and trying something different,” it doesn’t take much imagination to mean he will launch on the Cipressa. I think that will be his best chance to win too.

But he can't drop a normal WVA or MVP there.