Teams & Riders Tadej Pogačar discussion thread

[canina82]

I think they are pretty reliable, they are based on the power meter of pogacar. Keep in mind in 2025 he crashed and he was not going solo so he did not push at the same intensity, simply because he was taking turns with pidcock on the flat. So it's not a fair comparison (last year he could have pushed more). Plus he has very likely improved a bit. It's very unlikely he is 68 kg, 66-67 is more likely

This is why I used 2024 as an example. He also pushed 340 w during 80 kms.

 

[rafa92]

This is why I used 2024 as an example. He also pushed 340 w during 80 kms.

well that's 2 years ago, the jump in performance since then is probably important, plus the level of the competition was clearly higher in 2026 than in 2024, he has to adjust to that. Also for 2024 the weight factor is higher imo. In 2025-2026 he seemed similar, in 2024 he was clearly lighter, probably 2-2.5 kg

 

[James M]

"Stronger than ever..." - UAE not only dominate competition but cast warning over Tadej Pogacar's evolution

It comes to the surprise of no-one that UAE Team Emirates - XRG dominated the 2026 Strade Bianche, matching last year's first and third place with Tadej Pogacar and Isaac del Toro. However, it was a n...

cyclinguptodate.com

 

[canina82]

well that's 2 years ago, the jump in performance since then is probably important, plus the level of the competition was clearly higher in 2026 than in 2024, he has to adjust to that. Also for 2024 the weight factor is higher imo. In 2025-2026 he seemed similar, in 2024 he was clearly lighter, probably 2-2.5 kg

Did you read my post? I said he was lighter (65 kg) compared to 2026 (67 or 68 kg).

 

[rafa92]

Did you read my post? I said he was lighter (65 kg) compared to 2026 (67 or 68 kg).

yes, that's one of the factors, if you add the other 2 (his improvement and better competition) you can explain the difference in watts

 

[canina82]

yes, that's one of the factors, if you add the other 2 (his improvement and better competition) you can explain the difference in watts

The difference is massive, that's my point.
40 watts is a huge difference like I said in my post.

 

[Rasto]

40 watts is a monster go ride 200 and then 240 average for 2 hours and youll see

 

[Berniece]

40 watts is a monster go ride 200 and then 240 average for 2 hours and youll see

Going from 200 to 240 is a 20% increase. From 340 to 380 is 11%. So you are asking people do a ride of 200, and then 222. That's the difference Pogacar is feeling.

 

[rafa92]

dnf for mcnulty in paris nice after a crash, politt also crashed but finished the stage, at this point the choices for msr are very limited

 

[canina82]

Going from 200 to 240 is a 20% increase. From 340 to 380 is 11%. So you are asking people do a ride of 200, and then 222. That's the difference Pogacar is feeling.

This. However, 11% is still a massive improvement. It's like comparing Pogacar in the 2023 TdF and Pogacar in the 2024 TdF.
Or Pogacar would have to do 368 watts in 2024 to match his relative power (w/kg) in 2026 SB.

 

[canina82]

dnf for mcnulty in paris nice after a crash, politt also crashed but finished the stage, at this point the choices for msr are very limited

Oliveira
Del Toro
Christen
Veermersch
Pogacar
Novak
Morgado would be a nice add IMO.

 

[rafa92]

Oliveira
Del Toro
Christen
Veermersch
Pogacar
Novak
Morgado would be a nice add IMO.

yes at this point it will be something like this, maybe cosnefroy will be there, but clearly the team won't be as good as it could have been and this will probably be a big factor

 

[Berniece]

This. However, 11% is still a massive improvement. It's like comparing Pogacar in the 2023 TdF and Pogacar in the 2024 TdF.
Or Pogacar would have to do 368 watts in 2024 to match his relative power (w/kg) in 2026 SB.

Yeah, but I wouldn't think too much from Velon numbers. They've been wrong a couple of times already. yaf2, said it here: https://forum.cyclingnews.com/threads/tadej-pogačar-discussion-thread.34270/page-1676#post-3314810

 

[Krzysztof_O]

Don't be too obsessed with this 40 watts increase estimations:
1) The race was shorter in length and faster (likely due to good gravel quality) so the watts were generally higher (it was less about attrition than in the previous years).
2) It's likely that those watts are also overestimated due to the mentioned better gravel quality (otherwise you must believe other guys did similar progress or even greater as Pog's advantage was the smallest of those 3 years).

 

[canina82]

yes at this point it will be something like this, maybe cosnefroy will be there, but clearly the team won't be as good as it could have been and this will probably be a big factor

Of course his team is weaker after the loss of Wellens and Narvaez but this is part of cycling and he has the ability to overcome these issues. 2025 RVV is a prime example of that. He lost 3 riders (IIRC) before the crucial part of the race.

 

[rafa92]

Of course his team is weaker after the loss of Wellens and Narvaez but this is part of cycling and he has the ability to overcome these issues. 2025 RVV is a prime example of that. He lost 3 riders (IIRC) before the crucial part of the race.

rvv is a completely different story

 

[canina82]

rvv is a completely different story

It is without a doubt.

 

[HashRouge]

He's been doing another Roubaix recon from the looks of things. Looked a bit on the muddy side from the state of him!