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Are we watching the greatest cyclist of all time in Tadej Pogačar?
UAE-Team Emirates’ wonderboy might only be 25 years old, but he has already won 69 races in just over five years of professional racing, counting two Tours de France and four Monument victories among his many titles.
It’s his performances this spring, however, that have really raised the bar to the next level, with the Slovenian attacking 80km from the line in Strade Bianche and winning four of the seven stages of the Volta a Catalunya to triumph in the Spanish race by 3:41.
Pogačar’s ability to win one day and stage races, up short and long climbs, and in hot or cold weather marks him out as a true generational talent, a type of rider who the sport hasn’t seen Eddy Merckx, or perhaps ever.
Asked by Cycling Weekly at the Volta a Catalunya whether he’s starting to think about his place in history, Pogačar nodded and said: “Yeah. Now I have arrived at this point where I really strive to be the best ever.”
Will he? “Let’s see,” he responded. “There are big races coming this year, and if everything goes as planned I think it’s possible.”
Previously Pogačar has never entertained such a line of questioning, but his complete domination in almost every race he goes to has given him the confidence to seek out eternal greatness.
He is the overwhelming favourite to win the Giro d’Italia in May and will then take on the Tour against his adversary and the only rider who has regularly bested him, Jonas Vingegaard.
“I am in the best shape I have ever been in,” he told reporters after winning stage seven, and the overall, of the Catalan race in Barcelona. “I would say I feel the most comfortable I ever have had on the bike.
“I have made one more step to enjoy the bike even more, and to go every day with a smile on the bike. I feel good with my training and everything. I am really happy, and sometimes this is more important than just the numbers.”
Of cycling’s so-called ‘Big 7’ week-long stage races, Pogačar has now won three – Tirreno-Adriatico (twice), Paris-Nice and Volta a Catalunya. To complete the set, he has to triumph at the Itzulia Basque Country, Tour de Romandie, Critérium du Dauphiné and Tour de Suisse
“For sure I want to tick them all off,” he stated. “But it’s going to be a long way, because the calendar is quite difficult. I will go step-by-step: first this one, and then we will see which one we can try to go for.”
His margin of victories in recent weeks have also been extraordinary: almost three minutes in Strade, and close to four minutes in Catalunya. It could be construed as a sign of an athlete wanting to inflict maximum misery on their rivals to really hammer home their superiority, but Pogačar doesn’t see it that way.
“It’s just important to win,” he said. “It doesn’t matter if it’s by one second or five minutes. But you never know what can happen [in a stage race]: you can have bad luck, so it’s better to have some time than being stressed with a 10 second lead.”
Of his domination in Catalonia, he said that “the week meant a lot to me. I think I had a rough half a year last year so to start the season like this is really fantastic and this victory gives me a lot of confidence. I can see my shape is super good and I am really on a good path for the Giro and Tour de France.
“I confirmed my shape at Strade and Milan-Sanremo. Here it was a different parcours, a lot more climbing, and the whole week was fantastic. It was not just me but the whole team reassured that we are on a good path.”
Pogačar’s next race will be a much-anticipated showdown with Remco Evenepoel at Liège-Bastogne-Liège. While few people, including Evenepoel himself, would argue that the Belgian is stronger than Pogačar in a stage race, in a one day race it is a much closer encounter.
But no-one on the planet right now, maybe ever, is able to stitch together wins in all manner of races and terrains like Pogačar can. Is he the greatest ever? The more he performs, the more likely the answer to that question becomes a resounding yes.
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