"A true thoroughbred doesn't hold back": Patrick Lefevere previews Paris-Roubaix showdown between Pogacar and Van der Poel

Over the past two decades, Soudal Quick-Step has conquered the cobblestones of Paris-Roubaix six times. However, the well has run dry for The Wolfpack in recent years. As the Hell of the North approaches, former team boss Patrick Lefevere admits the drought is simply down to the overwhelming dominance of two men: Tadej Pogacar and Mathieu van der Poel.

Lefevere has no illusions about the current hierarchy in the peloton, acknowledging that Pogacar and Van der Poel currently stand head and shoulders above the rest. While he believes Pogacar is looking better than ever, he offered a blunt assessment of how the Slovenian's rivals capitulated earlier this spring.

"His performance in the Tour of Flanders proves that [he is better than ever]," Lefevere explained to Le Soir. "I am a bit more reserved about Milan-San Remo, because when he crashed with his rivals before the Cipressa, no barrage was thrown up by the race directors; the riders were able to come back between the team cars and nobody attacked. They were led to the slaughterhouse like sheep."

The Tour of Flanders told a vastly different story. UAE Team Emirates-XRG blew the race wide open, paving the way for the World Champion to arrive solo in Oudenaarde. However, Lefevere expects a completely different tactical dynamic on the brutal cobbles of Paris-Roubaix.

"Pogacar will not systematically profit from the support of his main rival, Mathieu van der Poel, as he did in Flanders," Lefevere noted, before defending the Dutchman's willingness to work with his greatest rival. "A support system that has been wrongly criticized by some, because a true thoroughbred doesn't hold back; it's a point of honor. You can't sit in the wheel of the best rider and beat him in a sprint without having done a turn at the front yourself."

If Van der Poel manages to match Pogacar pedal stroke for pedal stroke on the cobbles, he traditionally possesses the faster sprint. So, does Pogacar need to drop his rival before the finish? Lefevere has his doubts.

"I don't know if he really has to drop him. Maybe it's better to settle the matter on the velodrome. Neither Mathieu nor Tadej has much experience on the track. After a race like that, freshness is the most important thing."

With these two riders commanding the spotlight, what can we expect from Soudal Quick-Step this Sunday? Lefevere pointed to the promising form of Jasper Stuyven, who is still building his condition after an early-season illness.

"I saw a very good Jasper Stuyven in the Tour of Flanders," Lefevere stated. "He rode very intelligently, stayed at the back and took the front maybe twice. And he finished as the 'best of the rest', in sixth place. He was sick at the beginning of the season, so he still needs to improve a bit."

Meanwhile, Dylan van Baarle, brought in specifically as a co-leader for the cobbled Classics, lacked the legs to follow the decisive moves in Flanders. To succeed in Roubaix, Lefevere believes the team must leverage the contrasting racing styles of their two leaders.

"Where Jasper often relies on his brains, Dylan is capable of attacking where you least expect it. Ideally, the Dutchman would end up in the breakaway, allowing Jasper to follow, and they would later find themselves in a two-man lead in the finale."