Often described as Merckxian in his achievements and the way he races, Tadej Pogačar made yet another bit of history on Sunday as he won the Tour of Flanders for a third time. It marked the twelfth Monument victory of his career and moved him ahead of Roger De Vlaeminck in the all-time list, meaning that he is now second only to Merckx himself.
The World Champion has been unstoppable so far this season, winning all three races that he has started, with victories at Strade Bianche and Milan-San Remo preceding his Flandrian triumph. He has now won four consecutive Monuments and is now one win away from completing the full set.
With multiple victories at Liège-Bastogne-Liège and Il Lombardia to his name, a Paris-Roubaix cobble is the only omission from Pogačar’s Monument trophy cabinet. Having impressed on debut at last year’s race, he is set to return to the Hell of the North this weekend in the hopes of becoming only the fourth rider in history to win all of the Monuments.
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If he were to win Roubaix, then he would be the only rider to ever hold all five race wins at the same time, and given his incredible record at Liège and Lombardia over the last few years, he could go on to become the first rider to win all five Monuments in a single season.
Speaking to Eurosport after his victory at Flanders, Pogačar was asked if he thought such a feat was possible, to which he replied, “In one year, I don’t know. Next week is the really tough one. I will give it a go, but it’s going to be difficult. I don’t want to think about it, but I’ll just go from race to race and enjoy Roubaix next.”
“Just to win one race, let alone a Monument, is hard in cycling,” he continued. “Even if you have the best legs, everything needs to click together. Even after San Remo or today, I’m not thinking that I can win all five this year.”
Perhaps afraid of his words coming back to haunt him, or simply of jinxing it, the Slovenian rider’s objectives for the season are evident from his race programme alone, as he looks to win wherever he races.
Whatever happens, one thing seems certain: Tadej Pogačar will create yet more cycling history this season.
Everything hinges on Paris-Roubaix
If Tadej Pogačar is to win all five Monuments this season, then Paris-Roubaix will be his toughest challenge, as he has effectively shown that he can win Liège and Lombardia with his eyes closed at this point.
Of the five major one-day races, Pogačar’s characteristics are probably least suited to the Hell of the North, with his weight and size counting against him, as he is more susceptible to bouncing over the uneven cobbled roads.
The rigorous terrain did not seem to phase him too much on debut at last year’s race though, with only Mathieu van der Poel able to follow him over the pavé. It was ultimately a crash on a cobbled sector and a poorly timed puncture that put him out of contention, as he was forced to settle for second place whilst his Dutch rival soloed to victory.
Van der Poel will be his main adversary once again at this year’s race, with the likes of Mads Pedersen, Wout van Aert and Filippo Ganna also among the contenders. He will certainly have the power to match them over the cobbles, but the issue will be dropping them from his wheel if he hopes to avoid the uncertainty of a sprint in the Roubaix velodrome.
If Pogačar is able to get a gap, then it will be difficult to bring him back, as even Van der Poel struggled to make any inroads into his advantage once he went clear at the Tour of Flanders.
However, Roubaix is a different race and not always won by the strongest rider, as punctures and mechanicals are a constant. Luck will therefore be a major factor once again during this year’s race, and the Slovenian rider will need some on his side if he is to win.
One aspect that will play in Pogačar’s favour will be his team support, as UAE Team Emirates-XRG will bring a strong lineup to support the World Champion. Among their number will be former Paris-Roubaix runner-up Florian Vermeersch, who finished fifth at last year’s race and has been in tremendous form throughout the Spring Classics so far this season.
The Belgian rider will hope to be towards the front to support his leader as late into the race as possible, but it will ultimately be Pogačar’s own legs that decide the outcome of the race and whether or not history is made.
