“If anyone is surprised that Pogacar won this race then I don’t think they follow cycling” - Quinn Simmons secures World Championship top 10 in Zurich
Cycling
Understandably, all the post-2024 World Championship road race headlines are surrounding Tadej Pogacar's ride for the ages as he attacked 100km out, en route to his first ever Rainbow Jersey. Somewhat lost in the shuffle however, is a very strong performance from the USA's Quinn Simmons.
With a dangerous lead group nearly two minutes up the road, Pogacar decided to take matters into his own hands in the chase, attacking from the peloton at 100km to go. Although Simmons and Andrea Bagioli attempted to follow, they were soon dropped as Pogacar linked up with compatriot Jan Tratnik from the breakaway. Although the nature of Pogacar's victory came as a surprise, the end result did not shock Simmons at all.
“If anyone is surprised that Pogacar won this race then I don’t think they follow cycling,” the former US national champion Quinn Simmons stated after the finish. “I did 7000 kilojoules today, so you tell me if the race was difficult. My teammate Matteo Jorgenson told me before the race that he tried to follow Pogacar once and said that ‘when you go too close to the sun you get burnt,' and today I got burnt.”
Nevertheless, a 9th placed finish in a race containing some of the biggest and best the current peloton has to offer is a more than creditable result for Lidl - Trek's Simmons. Finishing as the highest placing American also, the 23-year-old can look back fondly on his performance in Zurich.
Kieran WoodDeputy Editor-in-Chief
Kieran Wood is a sports journalist based in Wales and has been active in journalism since 2022. He regularly contributes to DartsNews.com and CyclingUpToDate.com, where he covers professional cycling and darts. In cycling, his work includes liveblogs from major races, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España, alongside race reports and analysis. He has also conducted interviews with professional riders.
His reporting spans the full racing calendar, from one-day classics to stage races, with a focus on accurate, real-time coverage and clear contextual analysis. For statistics, results, and historical context, he regularly uses resources such as ProCyclingStats. To support reporting on rider activity and training context where relevant, he also references Strava.
In his work, Kieran places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles as new, verified information becomes available.
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- Ciccone had a very strong end of season. Consistently attacking and livening up races. Hope he makes that last leap in progress and starts notching some significant wins. Great rider to watch.Occam10-11-2026
- Me too!!!!!Occam10-11-2026
- they can sign any 100 of top riders today but Pogi will win over Remco any time at the TDF unless something goes wrongabstractengineer10-11-2026
- the time for a GC rider to retire is when they cannot win stages, or have a significant level drop like from winner/podium into top 5/10 consistently. Roglic is still competitive and Froome raced even though he became pack fodder.abstractengineer10-11-2026
- He should be in a different team. It was detrimental. For them it does not matter if he does not develop. He should have gone to a team where they need him to succeed.abstractengineer10-11-2026
- Technically it is "strictly forbidden to deviate from the lane they selected when launching into the sprint and, in so doing, endangering others". But: 1. Marie did not endangered anyone. 2. Above rule 2.3.036 is a Road Cycling rule not CX. 3. In Cyclocross we have only not well defined "irregular sprint" without description what would that mean. But even if you use 2.3.036 for CX it is still wrongly applied rule.averagecyclist10-11-2026
- Technically, leedorney is correct. There was a deviation. It was just a very questionable call to disqualify Marie from the victory, especially since she most likely would have won regardless of it..
santiagobenites10-11-2026 - You're WRONG!!! ... Capish?PogiSloFans10-11-2026
- ALBERTO CONTADOR isn't the only former cycling star who is praising Pogačar as the "greatest rider in history." EDDY MERCKX about TADEJ POGAČAR: “He has revived a style of cycling that we had almost forgotten. He is now better than me.” Key statements by Merckx about Pogačar in 2026: - Acknowledging his superiority: This time, Merckx openly admitted, without any subsequent backtracking or reservations, that Pogačar had surpassed him and was now above him. This contrasts with 2024, when he quickly softened his remarks about Pogačar being faster. - The possibility of a historic triple (Giro, Tour and Vuelta): During the July Tour de France (where Pogi claimed his fifth title), Merckx stated that Pogi was the only cyclist in history capable of winning all three Grand Tours (the Giro d'Italia, Tour de France and Vuelta a España) in a single season, provided the conditions were right and he had sufficient team support. - Lack of serious competition: Merckx emphasised that Pogačar has no real rivals in the mountains since 2024, thanks to his extraordinary climbing ability and the fact that he continues to improve despite still being under 28 (he turned 28 in autumn 2026). - Praise for his racing style: Merckx highlighted how Pogačar is bringing back the aggressive, uncompromising spirit of cycling's golden era, when races were not merely about calculated stages and tactical conservatism, but about attacking from long distances. PS: This is not "boring" ... this is called making real history... not statistical history. Capish?PogiSloFans10-11-2026
- No org will admit fault until the evidence in overwhelming and not even then. They have protected abusers and criminals.abstractengineer10-11-2026
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Tadej Pogačar is World Champion 🤩🌈 Attacking with 100km to go, the Slovenian completes the triple crown of the Giro, Tour de France and Worlds in one season 👏 #Zurich2024
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