"I'd never seen anything like that": Opponents are left speechless by Tadej Pogacar's Sanremo comeback
Cycling
Tadej Pogacar has taken another step towards placing his name alongside the cycling's greats last Saturday. At just 27 years of age, the Slovenian is only missing the Paris-Roubaix, Vuelta a Espana and Olympic gold in his palmares following his most recent Milano-Sanremo triumph. And while the Hell of the North is on Pogacar's programme for this spring, we're most likely going to have to wait for Pogacar's return to Vuelta at least another year.
Because for 2026, he has prepared an attempt to join Jacques Anquetil, Miguel Indurain, Bernard Hinault and Eddy Merckx as a five-time Tour de France champion. And for Lidl-Trek's Carlos Verona, there's no doubt that anybody not-named Jonas Vingegaard will find it near-impossible to stop Pogacar in July.
"I don’t know, I haven’t thought about it. Everything can be very different. It’s clear that Pogacar and Vingegaard are a step above, but cycling is unpredictable. In a three-week Grand Tour, anything can happen," he told Marca.
And after his epic showcase of power at Sanremo, it's become quite hard to still question whether Pogacar can be defeated. "What I saw yesterday, honestly, I'd never seen before. The ease with which he did it was impressive. To see a rider crash at a crucial moment and be able to recover like he did on the Cipressa is incredible. I think it reflects the kind of rider he is."
The greatest of history.
So, for Verona, it's quite a pleasure even to get to race alongside a man he deems to become a legend once he hangs up his bicycle. "For me, he's probably the best in history. We have to enjoy him while he's around. Sometimes he reduces the uncertainty at the start, but he also helps cycling grow."
Many believed that, in order to collect all five Monument victories, Milano-Sanremo crown would prove the hardest to obtain for the world champion. But there's no longer need for doubts. Now it feels almost like a formality that the best climber in the world should eventually steal the pride of cobble experts - the Paris-Roubaix.
"I do believe he will win all five Monuments before retiring. He has the ability to do it all. His motivation will be to keep achieving milestones, and as long as he has goals like that, I think he still has a long way to go," Verona concluded, looking ahead to seasons to come. Pogacar could then become the first non-Belgian rider to collect all five Monuments.
Ondrej ZhasilCycling Journalist
Ondřej Zhasil is a cycling journalist at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2023. He is based in Ostrava, the third-largest city in the Czech Republic, and covers professional cycling across the main UCI competitions, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España. A key focus of his work is startlist analysis and pre-race coverage, where he examines team selections, rider line-ups, and tactical scenarios ahead of major events.
Alongside WorldTour coverage, Ondřej has developed specific expertise in junior cycling and in racing across East Asia, including competitions in China and Japan. He also maintains a broad working knowledge of other disciplines and levels, including cyclocross, while continuing to expand his understanding of mountain bike racing.
Ondřej holds a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and Physics, which supports his analytical, data-driven approach to performance and race analysis. In his reporting, he regularly uses ProCyclingStats for results, statistics, and historical context. He places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles promptly when new, verified information becomes available.
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- Great win.However will the world champions jersey be simply a domestic for the season which will some what tarnish the jersey. I hope he is given free rein to try and win some races.paultryan200206-11-2026
- Gretsky wow how old are you lol. Classy sportman though.🤣🤣🤣🤣 Hope it is a good as the one they made on Mark Cavendish.paultryan200206-11-2026
- Literally the perfect RedBull athlete.anonymouscyclist06-11-2026
- And well understood in the CX community.anonymouscyclist06-11-2026
- "Anatomy of a G.O.A.T." OK, that's great!!! I've been saying all along: Tadej Pogačar-Pogi is the G.O.A.T... period. Not only in cycling... but he's the greatest sportsman that ever lived !!! But let's take a look of what real foolishness is. We have many many fools, also on this site, saying that Pogi is "boring,"... he's making cycling "boring"??? I can't believe what's comming out of their deteriorating bad breath mouths. So I guess Merckx, Hinault, Indurain, Fasto Coppi and Anquetil were also boring at their time!?!? I guess Michael Jordan, Le Bron, Gretzky, Messi, Ronaldo, Shumacher, Novak Džoković, Federer, Rossi, Marquez, Phelps, Michaela Shiffrin, Venus Williams, Bolt, Lewis Hamilton... etc. were all boring. PS: Many cycling fans that think that way, have to get a brain scan. Ad acta!!!PogiSloFans06-11-2026
- ridiculous. a normal racing incident. how lame do you have to be to complain about that?Ketterechts06-11-2026
- Rubbing is racing.
santiagobenites06-11-2026 - Throws an elbow, but crashes afterwards and he's upset.
Front24206-11-2026 - There should be nothing but praise for them: 1. Trying to make things safer, and 2. Trying something "new".acem8206-11-2026
- And a bit of a malcontent on top of it all that doesn’t help.mij06-11-2026
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