ANALYSIS | Was Tadej Pogacar’s World Championship win his greatest ever ride?

What we witnessed on Sunday, September 29, 2024, in Zurich was nothing short of legendary. Tadej Pogacar cemented his place in the pantheon of cycling with a historic victory in the World Championships road race, securing the coveted rainbow jersey for the first time in his career. And it wasn't just any win—it was a solo attack from 100 kilometres out, a feat that harkens back to the golden age of cycling, a time when the likes of Eddy Merckx ruled the roads. This victory stands as a monument to his dominance and might just be his greatest performance to date.

Pogacar, now the reigning champion in almost every meaningful race he’s contested, seems to be racing not just against his rivals but against history itself. With every pedal stroke, something remarkable happens. And in Zurich, what unfolded was the crowning of what may well be the most outstanding season in modern cycling. Even more impressive, he still has Il Lombardia to cap off this historic campaign.

This World Championship victory places Pogacar in an elite club, alongside only two others: Eddy Merckx and Stephen Roche. Like them, Tadej Pogacar has managed to win the Giro d'Italia, the Tour de France, and the World Championships all in the same year. It’s an achievement that requires a rider to be exceptional in every discipline, over a wide array of terrain, and against the world’s best riders. But what separates Pogacar from Merckx and Roche is the manner in which he has won.

The seeds of his incredible 2024 season were planted long before Zurich. On April 21, 2024, Pogacar took victory at Liège-Bastogne-Liège, a race that saw him destroy his rivals with astonishing ease. That win, coming so early in the season, was a warning shot to the rest of the peloton—this was going to be his year. Liège was merely the first of many major wins that would follow.

Fast forward to the World Championships, and Pogacar’s attack 100 kilometres from the finish was a move straight out of the pages of cycling folklore. His rivals, including Olympic champion Remco Evenepoel and defending champion Mathieu van der Poel, were left stunned. With 50 kilometres to go, the gap between Pogacar and the rest of the field began to widen, and by the finish, he crossed the line 30 seconds clear of the chasing group.

The Zurich victory, however astonishing, shouldn’t have come as a surprise. Pogacar had shown glimpses of his otherworldly form much earlier in the season. The signs were there in March when he won Strade Bianche with an incredible 81-kilometer solo attack. On that day, he left behind riders like Toms Skujiņš, Maxim Van Gils and Tom Pidcock, crossing the line nearly three minutes ahead of the field. It was an outrageous show of power and skill, setting the tone for what was to come later in the year.

At that point, no one could have predicted that Pogacar would go on to attempt the Giro-Tour double, a feat not accomplished since Marco Pantani in 1998. Coming off a difficult 2023 season marred by injury and a second-place finish in the Tour de France, some thought his ambitions were too lofty. He had surgery on his wrist after a crash at Liège-Bastogne-Liège, and his summer preparation had been severely hampered. In the Tour de France, Jonas Vingegaard crushed him on the Col de la Loze, leaving Pogačar a distant second in the overall standings.

But Pogacar’s decision to target both the Giro and the Tour was not a sign of hubris, it was the start of one of the greatest comeback seasons in history. He turned the page on his 2023 disappointments with that early victory in Strade Bianche, and from there, the floodgates opened.

By the time Pogacar lined up for the Giro d’Italia in May, he was in peak condition, and the race quickly became a procession. Stage after stage, he put time into his rivals, with six stage wins to his name by the time he rolled into Rome in pink. One of the most memorable performances came on stage 15, where he gave riders like Nairo Quintana and Michael Storer a head start on the queen stage of the race. But with 14 kilometres left on the final climb, Pogacar attacked. His acceleration was so explosive that he quickly overtook every rider on the road, eventually catching Quintana with 2 kilometres to go and winning the stage solo. Pogacar roared across the snowy mountain top finish in Italy, and his incredible season kept gathering momentum.

That Giro performance was a masterclass in stage racing, but the Tour de France was where Pogacar truly reasserted his dominance. Having been humbled by Vingegaard the year before, Pogacar was on a mission to reclaim the yellow jersey. He started the race cautiously but exploded into life in the second half. On stage 15, in one of the most thrilling rides of the race, he attacked in the mountains, distancing Vingegaard by over a minute and putting nearly three minutes into Remco Evenepoel. That stage alone was a reminder of why Pogacar is considered a generational talent, capable of turning the race upside down in an instant.

By the end of the Tour, Pogacar had reclaimed the maillot jaune, with six stage victories to his name once again. He had won both the Giro and the Tour, something few thought possible in the modern era, and had done so with an ease that bordered on arrogance.

For all the glory of his Giro and Tour victories, the World Championships in Zurich might be Pogacar’s finest hour. He wasn’t content to simply wait for a sprint or a tactical showdown with his rivals. Instead, he attacked with 100 kilometres still to race, in a move that was more Merckx than modern cycling. It was the type of audacious solo attack that made you wonder if he had gone too early, but Pogacar never looked back.

With every pedal stroke, the gap grew, and the chasing pack, filled with the world’s best climbers and time trialists, couldn’t reel him in. It was a ride that will be talked about for years, a performance that cemented his status as not just the best rider of his generation, but possibly one of the greatest of all time.

Now, with the World Championships, Giro d’Italia, and Tour de France victories in his pocket, the question is: where does Tadej Pogaar go from here? He’s already joined Merckx and Roche in the pantheon of riders who have won cycling’s three most prestigious titles in a single season. But there’s something about Pogacar that makes you think he’s not done yet.

There’s still Il Lombardia left to race, a race he’s won three times before. Should he win that too, he will have capped off a season that is not just historic but unprecedented in its scope. With 20 victories already to his name in 2024, including Monument wins, Grand Tour triumphs, and now the rainbow jersey, Tadej Pogacar has had a season that will be nearly impossible to replicate.

It’s hard to single out one ride as Pogacar’s greatest when his career is already littered with moments of brilliance. His 2020 Tour de France win, where he snatched victory in the final time trial, was an iconic moment in modern cycling. His multiple Monument victories have showcased his versatility. But his World Championships victory in Zurich stands out for its audacity, its execution, and its place in the context of his already incredible 2024 season.

Yes, this might just be Tadej Pogacar’s greatest ever ride. And if it is, it’s because it wasn’t just about the victory, but about how he won—by attacking 100 kilometres from the finish and holding off the world’s best riders. It was the culmination of a season that has rewritten the record books and left us wondering: just how much better can Tadej Pogacar get?