Teams & Riders Tadej Pogačar discussion thread

[KZD]

Regarding Pogačar coming back to Sanremo, I think he will eventually because its a monument and fits well in the calendar, however he might not be as well prepared as this season because he has clearly put on some muscle which probably made the difference in the sprint yesterday against Pidcock.

He is also looking good to become the first rider ever to win 4 monuments in the same season and even 5 its not impossible but obviously more difficult because of Roubaix. To connect with the discussion above, if he does win all 4 monuments this spring, there is no way he rides the Vuelta, because he will want to be the freshest possible for Il Lombardia.

 

[Red Rick]

Regarding Pogačar coming back to Sanremo, I think he will eventually because its a monument and fits well in the calendar, however he might not be as well prepared as this season because he has clearly put on some muscle which probably made the difference in the sprint yesterday against Pidcock.

He is also looking good to become the first rider ever to win 4 monuments in the same season and even 5 its not impossible but obviously more difficult because of Roubaix. To connect with the discussion above, if he does win all 4 monuments this spring, there is no way he rides the Vuelta, because he will want to be the freshest possible for Il Lombardia.

Why worry about Lombardia, he can go on a 3 week bender and win that.

 

[canina82]

Regarding Pogačar coming back to Sanremo, I think he will eventually because its a monument and fits well in the calendar, however he might not be as well prepared as this season because he has clearly put on some muscle which probably made the difference in the sprint yesterday against Pidcock.

He is also looking good to become the first rider ever to win 4 monuments in the same season and even 5 its not impossible but obviously more difficult because of Roubaix. To connect with the discussion above, if he does win all 4 monuments this spring, there is no way he rides the Vuelta, because he will want to be the freshest possible for Il Lombardia.

But those muscles will probably be important to PR too. So if he doesn't win this year, he will comeback bulky again.

 

[Salvarani]

Regarding Pogačar coming back to Sanremo, I think he will eventually because its a monument and fits well in the calendar, however he might not be as well prepared as this season because he has clearly put on some muscle which probably made the difference in the sprint yesterday against Pidcock.

He is also looking good to become the first rider ever to win 4 monuments in the same season and even 5 its not impossible but obviously more difficult because of Roubaix. To connect with the discussion above, if he does win all 4 monuments this spring, there is no way he rides the Vuelta, because he will want to be the freshest possible for Il Lombardia.

I also do think... he really just wants/needs to take a break after Tour for himself. Even if he wins Tour "easy", it is taxing mentally and he has been going non-stop for months.

I think he enjoys targeting one-day races, WC and Lombardia after that break rather than going pretty much directly to Vuelta. Another 3 weeks.

It just makes more sense to do Vuelta if he skips classics in the spring, mainly the cobbles, and the WC not suiting him in the year he think it is viable to go Vuelta. Tour-Vuelta could be done if no classics (cobbles) and WC not suiting him.

Or that he doesnt do Tour for whatever reason.

An alternative is also if he has to abandon Tour first-second week. Vuelta becomes an after-thought.

Trying to do absolutely everything in one year could come back to haunt one, even if it goes well, that has always been my main point to those who says go for the Vuelta as well when the schedule is as it is now. Unless things changes because of abandons or injuries on short notice.

Nobody can know for sure though, but it is just my view on it.

 

[Savant12]

I think he will be back but now able to ride it without the obsessive preparation all winter of recon training rides up Cipressa and Poggio so can ride it as far more of a free hit.

I think the mental effort he put into winning MSR was huge. The team was set-up perfectly before the crash and he's lucky other teams didn't go full gas on the Cipressa. Now that he's got the MSR win out of his system, I bet he's got Paris-Roubaix fully in his sights now.

 

[canina82]

There is a possibility MSR will bring le Manie back if he doesn't ride MSR next year?
Can't tolerate a MSR with attacks just in the last km of the Poggio

 

[The bald fraud]

Any chance he adds E3 or AGR/FW to his schedule?

AGR and FW? No chance because he is doing Romandie after LBL.
Before MSR, I considered E3 a likely addition to his schedule, but since he crashed yesterday, he will probably try to take care of wounds and fully prepare for Flanders-Roubaix double.

 

[Jan the Man]

Next year I think there is a possibility he will back load things a lot more and miss the early Monuments ride Ituzlia and perhaps riding only LBL before doing a Tour prep race and the Tour. This will allow him to target the Super Worlds in France and the Vuelta. If he checks off the Vuelta i think the remainder of his career he focuses on Monuments and the Tour.

I don’t think he changes plan and rides the Vuelta this year

 

[Extinction]

Next year I think there is a possibility he will back load things a lot more and miss the early Monuments ride Ituzlia and perhaps riding only LBL before doing a Tour prep race and the Tour. This will allow him to target the Super Worlds in France and the Vuelta. If he checks off the Vuelta i think the remainder of his career he focuses on Monuments and the Tour.

I don’t think he changes plan and rides the Vuelta this year

After he wins the Vuelta, I'd like to see him go for all 3 GTs in a season. It's never been done before. At worst he nets another Giro-Tour.

 

[Salvarani]

After he wins the Vuelta, I'd like to see him go for all 3 GTs in a season. It's never been done before. At worst he nets another Giro-Tour.

I think it is more likely he will try to get the record amount of monument wins. He enjoys racing them more.

 

[Extinction]

I think it is more likely he will try to get the record amount of monument wins. He enjoys racing them more.

He can devote one season to the GT hat trick and still do Flanders, Liege and Lombardia.

 

[Salvarani]

He can devote one season to the GT hat trick and still do Flanders, Liege and Lombardia.

I just dont see it happening, I guess.

 

[canina82]

He can devote one season to the GT hat trick and still do Flanders, Liege and Lombardia.

Of course not. I believe more in MSR and LBL just like he did in 2024. GdL would be out due to racing the Vuelta

 

[Shortcut]

I believe strongly he will go to Vuelta already this year. We will see after Romandie how strong Pogi is without any GT preparation at all. Roglic will also be at Romandie and he would be his ONLY opponent at Vuelta. He could win this year Vuelta with ease and there is no guarantee to win it like this in future with Seixas and other young guys coming. Not to go there just because of WC and GDL is even not such a good idea, he can still it even with Vuelta in his legs (like said riders are making race hard and i don't see this year Vuelta being hard at all) EC is not important race, GDL is not so important after already having record there, WC is something else, but like said, this is Pogi he could do both. It is just not the case for him like for others that everything most go perfect (like this MSR).

 

[vappa]

I'm looking forward to see his team in RVV.
They have a lot of injured riders, 3 of them are normally in RVV. But at this point, Pogacar just needs the gap to be lower than 3 minutes and he will do the rest.

PCS currently has 8 riders, Pogacar, Johansen, Bjerg, R Oliveira, Herregodts, Morgado, Politt, Vermeersch so big engines

 

[canina82]

PCS currently has 8 riders, Pogacar, Johansen, Bjerg, R Oliveira, Herregodts, Morgado, Politt, Vermeersch so big engines

Bjerg, Narvaez and Wellens have severe injuries.

Pogacar
Politt
Morgado
Vermeersch

These 4 are locked.

 

[The bald fraud]

EC is not important race, GDL is not so important after already having record there, WC is something else,

EC IS important, at least this year. It is IN SLOVENIA - he wants to take both RR AND TT. Of course it is important. GDL is important to do the Italian monument double (it would be especially weird to skip it if he wins all other Monuments this year, right?) and take the absolute record of wins. And WC is definitely more impotrant to Pogačar than Vuelta (the best preparation for it is GP Montreal, of course).

Vuelta would compromise all of these goals.

 

[Red Rick]

EC IS important, at least this year. It is IN SLOVENIA - he wants to take both RR AND TT. Of course it is important. GDL is important to do the Italian monument double (it would be especially weird to skip it if he wins all other Monuments this year, right?) and take the absolute record of wins. And WC is definitely more impotrant to Pogačar than Vuelta (the best preparation for it is GP Montreal, of course).

Vuelta would compromise all of these goals.

He needs to leave the Vuelta to Roglic otherwise the latter will not pull a combined 32 seconds for him at the WC and EC

 

[Krzysztof_O]

He needs to leave the Vuelta to Roglic otherwise the latter will not pull a combined 32 seconds for him at the WC and EC

I think we don't see the big picture i.e. Rogla telling jokes through the radio so that Pogi wouldn't fall a sleep during those boring 100 km solos.

Edit: Forgot there's no radio

 

[Poursuivant]

EC IS important, at least this year. It is IN SLOVENIA - he wants to take both RR AND TT. Of course it is important. GDL is important to do the Italian monument double (it would be especially weird to skip it if he wins all other Monuments this year, right?) and take the absolute record of wins. And WC is definitely more impotrant to Pogačar than Vuelta (the best preparation for it is GP Montreal, of course).

Vuelta would compromise all of these goals.

Do we know the parcours for EC ITT and WC ITT this year?

 

[vappa]

Do we know the parcours for EC ITT and WC ITT this year?

For EC we don't know anything, even here in Slovenia, other than the RR should start in Ljubljana

Worlds courses:

World Cycling Championships 2026 Canada

www.cyclingstage.com

 

[pihi42]

Now PR is the most important race of them all.
I really hope he doesn't win it this year already.
It is the last thing causing him great desire. Everything else he's won.
Perhaps he has to tie some loose ends like 5th Tour, Vuelta, etc.
But in essence, PR is what is keeping the primordial fire in his heart.
After that, i don't know. He said it himself on multiple occasions that being so great is but a fleeting moment.

 

[canina82]

Now PR is the most important race of them all.
I really hope he doesn't win it this year already.
It is the last thing causing him great desire. Everything else he's won.
Perhaps he has to tie some loose ends like 5th Tour, Vuelta, etc.
But in essence, PR is what is keeping the primordial fire in his heart.
After that, i don't know. He said it himself on multiple occasions that being so great is but a fleeting moment.

There is still the ORR in Los Angeles.

 

[Shortcut]

EC IS important, at least this year. It is IN SLOVENIA - he wants to take both RR AND TT. Of course it is important. GDL is important to do the Italian monument double (it would be especially weird to skip it if he wins all other Monuments this year, right?) and take the absolute record of wins. And WC is definitely more impotrant to Pogačar than Vuelta (the best preparation for it is GP Montreal, of course).

Vuelta would compromise all of these goals.

Everything could compromise all of these goals.. you are overcomplicating-when it is about Pogacar, he is just different. I get why he skipped Vuelta last year, but if TdF 2026 go without a ilness/crash and he needs to deal at Vuelta only with Roglic and not Jonas, he will do it. EC was never important, it is nice to have it but he don't need special preparation for it EVEN if it is in Slovenia. WC is of course important but risking everything because of one day is weird. On the other hand he can STILL win it even with (easy) Vuelta in his legs.