"It would be strange if anyone could suddenly reach their level": Boogerd looks forwards to a Pogacar-Vingegaard duel
Cycling
The 2026 Tour de France victory is expected to be settled in a duel between Tadej Pogacar and Jonas Vingegaard. Not much has changed in this regard over the past years. But according to Michael Boogerd, this does not take away from the spectacle in the slightest. Especially as the Slovenian appears to be extremely motivated to join the history's greats at five overall titles.
The motivation is apparent from the way Pogacar's teammates from UAE Team Emirates - XRG approach racing. Whilst Tadej Pogacar dominated the Tour de Suisse, his further three teammates managed to sneak into the final top-10.
But of course, it's Pogacar's great exploits that catch an eye. "When you see how he is starting the summer, it doesn't suggest a rider who is at the end of his tether," says the analyst for NOS.
The Dutch expert has no doubts that Pogacar is ready to do everything to prevail this July. "When you see him racing, you see a rider who is motivated down to his little toenail. He wants to win. He is back for his fifth."
Pogacar is not boring
The pool of favourites is as deep as most years this decade, yet Boogerd doesn't find the dynamics dull at all. In fact, he enjoys the spectacle that Pogacar always promises to deliver. Be it in the mountains, or in any other favorable race situation.
"No, the Tour is never boring. Pogacar races in a completely different way than in the classics, where he attacks as early as 60, 70, or 80 kilometers from the finish," he explains. "He won't do that in the Tour. So it will remain exciting until the final climb."
Pogacar and Vingegaard will be the headline acts at the Tour de France
Analysts are trying to vouch for French hope Paul Seixas, or Red Bull duo Florian Lipowitz and Remco Evenepoel as potential candidates to take on the overwhelming duo, but Boogerd is not one of them.
"I am looking forward to that Vingegaard-Pogacar duel," concludes Boogerd. "And as for the rest, with all due respect, it would be very strange if they could suddenly reach the level of those two now."
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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- dude, Lemond never even was in the same race as Armstrong. He throws all these aspersions on other American riders who might usurp his throne as the greatest ever American racer. He doesn't say a single thing about (foreign) dopers who he actually raced against. Biggest douchebag move ever. I used to revere that guy, now I despise him. His actions are so weird.fatsupermodel02-11-2026
- This is just stupid, You do what you are good at not what you are weak at. He has no results to speak of when he participated. Even Froome, Conatdor had very little. With Pogi there he wont win none of the classics. he is already 30+ with a few years left at the top. It takes years to get good at classics. Is that really worth the effort???abstractengineer02-11-2026
- Sure, little fella.awp02-11-2026
- You'll be the ongoing joke of 2027 with anything you post here!frieders302-11-2026
- Awwww your inside information must be from PogiFanGirl. You two daughters of different mothers?frieders302-11-2026
- Hey PogIFanGirl...wipe that cream from your lips! You're ever loving drooling and whatever you have for Tadej has your brain fried!frieders302-11-2026
- Why should he 'let it go' ! Because you said so? Anytime LA Doper is called out is a win win !frieders302-11-2026
- Geez LeMond...let it go. You're a has been, albeit a former great one. But this is all water under the bridge and just undermines your legacy further.Mshark01-11-2026
- 'The Slovenian has collected four Tour de France titles' ... '[Kieran Wood's] ... 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'. i would say that is pretty inaccurate accurate coverage, kieran wood ... too bad that AI's knowledge often lags several months behind ... but proof reading is certainly part of accurate coverage, isn't it? but fortunately does Kieran Wood place 'strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles as new, verified information becomes available.' i would say the fifth tdf title is pretty new (and even verified) information, so feel free to update this article.Ketterechts01-11-2026
- You are wrong, they are already working on his new tt position. And yes, Trump does love you 😂👍🏼awp01-11-2026
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