"In terms of tactics and strategy, Visma is five steps ahead" - Tom Dumoulin bashes UAE's lack of action after Pogacar's Paris-Roubaix puncture
Cycling
Paris-Roubaix is a chaotic race, but the riders are well aware of it. Hence in the moment Tadej Pogacar punctured with 120 kilometers to go, a defining period in the race, the lack of a teammate giving the World Champion a bike was quite a surprise for Tom Dumoulin who criticizes the Emirati team's errors in decision making during a time of urgency.
"I am totally amazed at how things went at UAE. Pogacar got a puncture at a very bad moment in the race twenty kilometers before the Trouée d'Arenberg," Dumoulin said in the NOS Cycling podcast. "The peloton was already split in two. It was already full-on racing. You know 'that is going to cause problems. They are riding at the front and he drops off'."
Chaos unfolded. It was a moment of bad luck, put simply. Pogacar suffered a mechanical at a time where the team car was nowhere to be seen, lost in the convoy behind the many groups that were split throughout the road, fruit of the race's chaotic nature. However, how it could've been different is if the Slovenian had received a bike from a teammate. "There is a teammate sitting on his wheel, mind you. They see that he has a puncture. He drops back through the peloton," he argues.
"At the back, there is another teammate, [António] Morgado. There are images and then you see Morgado looking at Pogacar like 'hey, there goes my team leader with his flat tire'. There were four teammates there, and no one thought 'we need to stop to assist him', or give him a wheel. No one shifted gears, and they stayed in the peloton."
Dumoulin was stunned with this situation. Pogacar lost time on the road, had a neutral bike that required switching once again - only after the team's car finally made it to him several minutes later - and the lack of radio access from the team's riders meant that he was isolated for a while before he was tracked down.
Visma is over UAE in terms of decision-making
"That is obviously not ideal. He is then a minute behind the peloton. In no man's land. Riding hard at the front without teammates, who were strolling along in the first peloton. I found it very strange to watch." It is the nature of Roubaix. His natural ability saw him still making a comeback and finishing second in the race, but that is largely due to an endurance and wattage that other riders simply do not have in their arsenal.
But Dumoulin, a former pro at the top level, was left with a very bad impression of the team following Roubaix. "They have fantastic riders and they can dominate races, but the team management seems to lack ingenuity," he argues.
"If you look at how this went... Or Del Toro, who lost the Giro last year in a silly way. Then you see that in terms of tactics and strategy, Visma is five steps ahead. They simply made a mistake, because those riders should have just waited. You could have let Florian Vermeersch stay at the front, but the rest need to stop immediately and see what they can do".
Rúben SilvaEditor-in-Chief
A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
Beyond editorial work, he has been closely involved in the expansion and coordination of CyclingUpToDate’s wider network, helping establish and support sister platforms across multiple languages. This includes ongoing collaboration with CiclismoAlDia (Spanish), CiclismoAtual (Portuguese), WielrennenUpToDate (Dutch), and RadsportAktuell (German), contributing to a shared editorial vision and consistent international coverage.
He also helps oversee editorial governance across the network, setting standards for accuracy and consistency and coordinating updates or corrections when needed.
Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
Within 18 months of launch, he helped grow CyclingUpToDate’s English-language platform into one of the most-read cycling news websites, built entirely from the ground up. As both a professional journalist and lifelong cycling enthusiast, his focus remains on delivering accurate, timely, and well-contextualized coverage.
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- Hmmm, you seem to have a very convenient black and white view of things. Perhaps you haven’t been around much to discover how complex problems can become over time with people who know how to control, manipulate (or worse) others so gradually or subtly that you arrive at an irresolvable situation before you realise. This is how many inconveniences get introduced to the young, naïve, passionate or “desperate”, knowing they are not armed, protected or strong enough to defend themselves once it’s too late. Why do you think omerta culture is so widespread, why do you think so many people continue to go through so many awful things in life that others can’t understand anyone getting into? Life may be far more jolly for you but you would do well to understand (or reflect more on) the real world to refrain from being so quick to criticise those in a hard spot that may have genuine reason for speaking out.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- Seriously do you think when somebody gets into a serious accident, the ambulance is called by the hurt person?🤦 there is always a buddy system in place for a risky job. police , firefighters etc so that if someone gets hurt, the other call that in.abstractengineer07-11-2026
- I get the point totally. We live in the snowflake society where some riders forget they are getting paid to ride and get results. When they have a few issues they try to look outside of the real issue instead of themselves. It odd so many of the team are making no complaints and getting on with their job. If you do not like what you do find another job simples. Tough love as my mum would say.paultryan200207-11-2026
- many people advise him to grow slowly and rather do giro and/or vuelta instead of tdf. but i can totally understand that he is not satisfied with taking over once pogi declines, but instead beat him in his prime. so if he goes for tdf again, i‘m all for it. let‘s hope that pogi recovers soon!Ketterechts07-11-2026
- So gracious to offer something no-one would be prepared to pay for. The Giro is not the Tour and doesn’t command the same interest or attract the same “elite” (those willing to pay to be a part of something they consider has ego boosting potential). Roadside viewing will always largely remain free for everyone outside circuits. Introduction of a symbolic entrance to mountain climbs is worthy of exploration. Asking 1-2€ isn’t going to repulse real fans (most will spend 50-100€ on their outing that day all things included) but will prevent a portion of the total knobhead thrillseekers who will join in any large gathering as long as it’s free, just because they’re attracted to crowds, without which it it difficult for them to work up their anti-social behaviour.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- How is radio going to help when someone went over a cliff or bridge or off the roadside into a forest unnoticed and is laying there unconscious?Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- Yep, next we’ll be accusing F1 drivers of avoiding Le Mans.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- But on what is that opinion based? Are you holding him to a different standard than others? Are you saying he should do learn to like something he doesn’t Are you saying he hasn’t achieved enough Are you saying he pretends to be better than his results? It’s actually a really strange opinion to oust if you consider it objectively or rationally. Try applying it to others or yourself by asking if not EVERYONE should then be doing more? Nobody in athletics or swimming gets criticism for not expanding their repertoire when a rival or someone else does. In fact, most who move to another event get accused of running from their rival. Opinions are boring, the reasons behind them are what count.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- for a medical chief to throw things like is just bad. There are already radios which were banned for spectacle. allow radios. Gps trackers are not a complete solutionabstractengineer07-11-2026
- any rider less than 25 whether they are really ready for the position of leadership of GT is probably not the case. I think Pogi himself suffered when he was defeated by Jonas in the TDF twice. But that would be the team's job to ensure support so that they can bounce back. It requires a team and time to get back up and win after getting knocked down.abstractengineer07-11-2026
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