Teams & Riders Tadej Pogačar discussion thread

[Krzysztof_O]

I'd prefer see Pogacar retired than like Froome.

Judging by recent comments Pogi may retire before Froomey.

 

[Brullnux]

His contract expires in 2030.
So he has 5 years to win Roubaix and San Remo. I'm not talking about the Vuelta because he doesn't prioritize it and he might retire without it in his palmares.
His compatriot Primoz is 9 years older than him and doesn't talk about retirement as much as him.
Tadej needs to get his s*** together.

Roglic has only done nine years of top level pro cycling, Pogacar has done six. By 2030 he'll have done 11 years at the very top, which is a perfectly normal career. I don't think you can judge someone's career and motivation solely by age, you have to take into account how long they're at an elite level too. Compare Pogacar to someone like Nibali, who spent four-five years working up to the top, ten years at the top, then retired. It's a normal trajectory, but Pogacar skipped the four-five years of apprenticeship, so it's natural he is more mentally fatigued.

Perhaps there's also something to be said for a longer apprenticeship period giving you more motivation or mental fortitude to continue for longer. But that's conjecture.

 

[rafa92]

Teddy is basically a pensioner already. He's retired except a few more Tour and monument wins.

let's not exaggerate, he has a contract until 2030, the most lucrative in history, I highly doubt he will retire before 2030. So that's 5 and a half seasons more. At the tour he didn't enjoy the experience, I presume mainly due to the unbearable french fans and the press but he still has a lot in his tank imo

 

[Rou]

Maybe Pog should call Valverde and ask him how he was able to do it?
20 Seasons at the Top.
His first win was in 2003. His last one was in 2022. Every year in GOOD shape from February to October. Race days usually from 70 to 90+.
THIS GUY WAS AN ANOMALY!

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Probably the best cycling analogy for a major champion retiring early and being done with the sport outright would be Miguel Indurain. He was only 32 years and 2 months old at the time, and for all the attention on his 11th place in the Tour that year, he still won the Dauphiné, the Olympic TT, and three other short stage races. Obviously a lot of the money saved via Indurain's retirement helped them get Olano, de las Cuevas and Zülle in the next couple of years, but they still had José María Jiménez, Ángel Casero, Santi Blanco, Orlando Rodrigues on the books at the time and would then add Unai Osa (plus his brother from Euskaltel) and Paco Mancebo from the espoir ranks, many of whom may have benefited from the veteran leadership of an Indurain.

Paolo Bettini, also, retired at 34 and stayed gone (despite the Italian taxman being on his case, which was a large part of why Davide Rebellin initially came back into his 40s), winning two Vuelta stages and finishing 9th in Lombardia as his final race. Certainly Il Grillo could have kept on racing at a high level for at least another couple of years.

It is worth noting that both of them had had a falling out with their teams at the time, though - Indurain's relationship with Echavarrí souring over an abortive Hour Record attempt in 1995 and severing over a 1996 Vuelta that Miguelón didn't want to be at, and Bettini being upset at Lefévère perceivedly low-balling him on a contract offer due to his age and signing Stefan Schumacher openly stating in public that he was to serve as a replacement for Bettini while they were still, as Bettini tells it (so not exactly a neutral source), ostensibly in contract negotiations with the Italian.

 

[rafa92]

Maybe Pog should call Valverde and ask him how he was able to do it?
20 Seasons at the Top.
His first win was in 2003. His last one was in 2022. Every year in GOOD shape from February to October. Race days usually from 70 to 90+.
THIS GUY WAS AN ANOMALY!

it's all about motivation, pog's trainer has clearly said that the challenge now to keep him at this level is not due to age but keeping the motivation. If he had the motivation he could go on for at least 7-8 other years considering he is only 26

 

[Cycling111]

Maybe Pog should call Valverde and ask him how he was able to do it?
20 Seasons at the Top.
His first win was in 2003. His last one was in 2022. Every year in GOOD shape from February to October. Race days usually from 70 to 90+.
THIS GUY WAS AN ANOMALY!

It's not comparable. Valverde didn't spend six years fighting to win the Tour.

Merckx did seven Tours, for example, Poagacar already six. And even Merckx took a year off from the Tour to ride the Vuelta.

Multiple Tour winners don't more than 7-8 years going to the Tour.

Contador said it. He enjoyed the Giro, but not the Tour. The Tour fans are toxic and burn out cyclists a lot.

Valverde hasn't experienced that; he's never been a favorite for the Tour.
Besides, Valverde was banned for two years. He wanted to redeem himself, and that's when he had another motivation. But Valverde's seasons were different.

The most similar to him in Tour is Vingengaatd, who hasn't raced since the Algarve and hasn't been on Pogacar's schedule for six years.
The rest of the cyclists are even less so. VDP without pressure since Roubaix. Remco debuted in 2019 as Pogacar but not in the Tour until last year.

 

[peterfin]

let's not exaggerate, he has a contract until 2030, the most lucrative in history, I highly doubt he will retire before 2030. So that's 5 and a half seasons more. At the tour he didn't enjoy the experience, I presume mainly due to the unbearable french fans and the press but he still has a lot in his tank imo

Next time those same people and probably more will be all over him if he starts to dominate the race again so he better gets used to it.

 

[Shortcut]

Not gonna happen. He already said he will aim for Paris - Roubaix next year.
World's RR will be in Canada in 2026 so he will not do the Vuelta again.
I see him trying the Vuelta in 2028 because World's will be a sprinter's race in Abu Dhabi. The problem is he'll be 30 and we don't know what the level of his rivals will be.

I was 100% sure he is not gonna ride Vuelta this year and was suprised it was in his schedule. I find this fall schedule perfect as it is now but just for this year. I don't know why everybody think WC Canada should be so easy for him? Even if it is like Montreal GT looks right now (doubt it) it is still really hard to win without great team. Rwanda is much much more suited for him and WC 2027 too. If he wins this year TT then he doesn't need to worry anymore about it next year. I am sure Jonas will ride Giro next year and Tadej Vuelta.

 

[James M]

Pogi saw Wellens peak at 34 and is just waiting to peak at 34 himself. Hes preparing to pull a Jordan, its just mandatory goat stuff.

 

[scribers]

Roglic has only done nine years of top level pro cycling, Pogacar has done six. By 2030 he'll have done 11 years at the very top, which is a perfectly normal career. I don't think you can judge someone's career and motivation solely by age, you have to take into account how long they're at an elite level too. Compare Pogacar to someone like Nibali, who spent four-five years working up to the top, ten years at the top, then retired. It's a normal trajectory, but Pogacar skipped the four-five years of apprenticeship, so it's natural he is more mentally fatigued.

Perhaps there's also something to be said for a longer apprenticeship period giving you more motivation or mental fortitude to continue for longer. But that's conjecture.

The problem is not the if/when he will retire. The problem is he’s talking about it at such a young age. Defeatist mentality. Disrespectful to his spomsor, the fans, the race, and to himself frankly. Invites poor performance. Killjoy in moments of success.

I reckon he owes no one anything. Maybe he wants a little cottage somewhere he can focus on making firewood in the summer to keep it warm in the winter. I’m sure he won’t try to surface to talk about how he could have been this or that.

 

[Cycling111]

The problem is not the if/when he will retire. The problem is he’s talking about it at such a young age. Defeatist mentality. Disrespectful to his spomsor, the fans, the race, and to himself frankly. Invites poor performance. Killjoy in moments of success.

I reckon he owes no one anything. Maybe he wants a little cottage somewhere he can focus on making firewood in the summer to keep it warm in the winter. I’m sure he won’t try to surface to talk about how he could have been this or that.

I don't see it that way. If you think you don't have much time left, you try to make the most of the little time you have left. I don't see it as demotivating; on the contrary, it motivates you to give even more of whatever little time you have left.

But here he's talking about several Tours and years.

As I said, Merckx has done 7 Tours, Pogacar has 6. He's probably doing another 3-4. That's a lot. We're not contextualizing what that means, especially for someone with his schedule. It's not like cycling used to be. Pogacar competes in the spring with VDP, who has no pressure after Roubaix, while Vingegaard has spent the entire spring training for the Tour.

 

[QueenStagiaire]

Pogi saw Wellens peak at 34 and is just waiting to peak at 34 himself. Hes preparing to pull a Jordan, its just mandatory goat stuff.

Go off to play baseball? Or make a Looney tunes movie?

 

[Brullnux]

The problem is not the if/when he will retire. The problem is he’s talking about it at such a young age. Defeatist mentality. Disrespectful to his spomsor, the fans, the race, and to himself frankly. Invites poor performance. Killjoy in moments of success.

I reckon he owes no one anything. Maybe he wants a little cottage somewhere he can focus on making firewood in the summer to keep it warm in the winter. I’m sure he won’t try to surface to talk about how he could have been this or that.

My point is that age doesn't matter, what matters is that he's been competing at a top level for six years, which isn't unusual for someone to be thinking about the end of their career – just normally that happens at 30, not 26.

 

[scribers]

I don't see it that way. If you think you don't have much time left, you try to make the most of the little time you have left. I don't see it as demotivating; on the contrary, it motivates you to give even more of whatever little time you have left.

But here he's talking about several Tours and years.

As I said, Merckx has done 7 Tours, Pogacar has 6. He's probably doing another 3-4. That's a lot. We're not contextualizing what that means, especially for someone with his schedule. It's not like cycling used to be. Pogacar competes in the spring with VDP, who has no pressure after Roubaix, while Vingegaard has spent the entire spring training for the Tour.

I think you’re stretching to turn a negative into a positive. He didn’t have to talk about any of this and certainly not at such a young age. Maybe someone can screw his head back on

 

[Moose McKnuckles]

I'd prefer to see Pogacar retire like Valverde.
At 39 he was a monster and podiumed a Grand Tour.
At 42 he was 4th at Emilia, 3rd at Varesine and 6th at Lombardia.
An ABSOLUTE UNIT.

Valverde was a brilliant pro cyclist, an amazing talent. But he doesn't have anywhere near the palmares that Pogacar has at 26.
Pogacar won the same number of TdF stages at this year's Tour that Valverde won in his entire career.
The light than burns brightest tends to burn the shortest. Not to say I would not love to see Pogacar race for another 15 years, but I doubt he will.

 

[Extinction]

Probably the best cycling analogy for a major champion retiring early and being done with the sport outright would be Miguel Indurain. He was only 32 years and 2 months old at the time,

And Bernard Hinault prior, with a better track record.

 

[Krzysztof_O]

Pogi saw Wellens peak at 34 and is just waiting to peak at 34 himself. Hes preparing to pull a Jordan, its just mandatory goat stuff.

At the age of 34 Pogi's and Urshka's kids factory will be going full gas. OTOH Pogi himself will be overtaken uphill even by grandpas.

 

[Moose McKnuckles]

The next cycling generation is going to see a battle between Pog and Urska's vs. Ferrand-Prevot and Van Baarle's vs. the Deignans' kids.

 

[James M]

At the age of 34 Pogi's and Urshka's kids factory will be going full gas. OTOH Pogi himself will be overtaken uphill even by grandpas.

The next cycling generation is going to see a battle between Pog and Urska's vs. Ferrand-Prevot and Van Baarle's vs. the Deignans' kids.

If Tadej and Urska have a son who goes pro, with Tadej on the sidelines teaching him the way, plus those superior genes: this is the rest of the cycling world coming together to mourn.

View: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/6BE4Ue56GXY?feature=share

 

[scribers]

And Bernard Hinault prior, with a better track record.

He wasn’t dominating or really winning at all. I can’t prove that beyond the point he left. But he wasn’t a factor in 1 day races and he was being dropped by the GC favorites at the end.

 

[scribers]

Valverde was a brilliant pro cyclist, an amazing talent. But he doesn't have anywhere near the palmares that Pogacar has at 26.
Pogacar won the same number of TdF stages at this year's Tour that Valverde won in his entire career.
The light than burns brightest tends to burn the shortest. Not to say I would not love to see Pogacar race for another 15 years, but I doubt he will.

Just give me another 7-8 years without frequently visiting retirement in press until then.

I’m not asking a lot

 

[Gigs_98]

Pogacar does have "retiring early just to come back, still being really good but no longer quite the force he used to be" written all over him. It's a narrative in sports that repeats itself over and over again. Athletes who retire at the peak of their abilities because they are burnt out and not because of physical decline seem to fall into that trap extremely frequently

 

[QueenStagiaire]

Pogacar does have "retiring early just to come back, still being really good but no longer quite the force he used to be" written all over him. It's a narrative in sports that repeats itself over and over again. Athletes who retire at the peak of their abilities because they are burnt out and not because of physical decline seem to fall into that trap extremely frequently

So you‘re saying he‘s… TikTok Armstrong?

 

[Breh]

Is he an avid user of TikTok?