“Pogacar and Van der Poel are the favourites, but I’m going there to win” – Wout van Aert rejects claims he’s lost his killer instinct ahead of Milano-Sanremo

Wout van Aert heads into Milano-Sanremo acknowledging that the balance of power at the top of the sport has shifted. The Team Visma | Lease a Bike rider accepts that riders like Tadej Pogacar and Mathieu van der Poel currently occupy the position of standout favourites for cycling’s first Monument of the season.

But that acknowledgement, he insists, should not be confused with a loss of ambition.

“I don’t think I’m one of the favourites. Pogacar and Van der Poel are the big favourites,” Van Aert said in conversation with Sporza. “I’m going to Milano-Sanremo to win.”

The Belgian arrives at the race after another week of racing at Tirreno-Adriatico that has offered signs of encouraging form, even if it did not deliver the victory that has so far eluded him in 2026.

Van Aert’s campaign in Italy has largely been about sharpening condition rather than chasing immediate results. From the opening time trial to the punchier middle stages, the focus has been on building rhythm ahead of the spring Classics rather than forcing the race.

That approach has still produced flashes of the strength that has made him one of the most versatile riders in the peloton. He was involved in several key moments across the week and came closest to a result on stage four, where he finished among the leading riders after an aggressive finale.

It is the type of performance that reinforces the sense that his condition is building at the right moment. Tirreno-Adriatico traditionally serves as a final rehearsal for Milano-Sanremo and the races that follow, and Van Aert has used the Italian stage race in precisely that way.

When asked how much progress he feels he has made during the week, however, the Belgian offered a typically straightforward answer. “I don’t know,” Van Aert said. “I think my legs have been good this week.”

His confidence extends beyond his own form. When asked whether the eventual Milano-Sanremo winner has already been racing at Tirreno-Adriatico this week, Van Aert answered with a mixture of humour and belief. “Do I think the winner of Sanremo has ridden here? Yes. If I said no, I would have very little confidence.”

If there is one Monument where Van Aert has consistently shown his ability to fight for victory, it is Milano-Sanremo.

The Belgian famously won the race in 2020 after surviving the Poggio and outsprinting the select group that reached the Via Roma. It remains one of the defining victories of his career and confirmed that his combination of endurance, climbing ability and sprint speed is ideally suited to La Primavera.

Across his appearances, he has repeatedly been present in the decisive moments of the race, whether the action unfolds on the Poggio or in the sprint that often follows. “I’ve never had a bad Sanremo, so I’m happy to be back there,” Van Aert said.

Last year’s edition was a very different experience for Van Aert, who watched the finale from afar while training in Tenerife. “Last year I watched the finale unfold from altitude training in Tenerife with a bit of pain in my heart.”

Those memories only reinforce his motivation to return to the start line ready to compete again. “I can win, because Milano-Sanremo is a race where a lot can happen,” Van Aert explained. “I’m going there to win.”

Part of the conversation surrounding Van Aert in recent seasons has centred on whether the ruthless finishing instinct that characterised the early phase of his career has faded.

Analysts have occasionally suggested that the Belgian wins less frequently than he once did. Van Aert himself recognises that the numbers have changed, but he rejects the idea that the competitive drive behind those victories has disappeared. “I don’t know who started that claim,” he said. “I understand that I win considerably less than I used to, but that doesn’t mean the winner in me has disappeared.”

For Van Aert, the objective for the coming weeks is straightforward. If he can consistently deliver his best performances throughout the Classics, he believes the results will follow. “If I can simply have a good Classics period from now on where I’m able to give my best each time, I’ll be satisfied,” Van Aert said. “I hope the results will follow. The work is more or less done, and I’ve done everything possible to be in the best condition. Now the big one-day races can come.”

And with Milano-Sanremo now just days away, the first opportunity to test that belief is approaching quickly.