Sean Kelly on Tadej Pogacar: "I can see him winning Roubaix before Milano-Sanremo"

Tadej Pogacar is aiming high in 2025 and the biggest goal of his spring will be Milano-Sanremo. A winner of three monuments already, the UAE Team Emirates rider has been seeking the Italian race over the past two seasons where he came close to winning but hasn't managed to do so. Sean Kelly, former pro, commentator and pundit, believes that it is actually more likely that the World Champion will win Paris-Roubaix.

An interesting opinion, differing from the majority, who argue that Roubaix is a totally different beast - a race that features many risks and where the heavyweight riders with a lot of experience can have the upper hand over the Slovenian. A Sanremo win has not been far from Pogacar's palmarès, but it's a race where he will always be heavily marked and where it's hard to make the difference as a climber.

“It’s possible, but it’s going to be tough. It’s going to be tough to get rid of everyone on the Cipressa or Poggio. Roubaix is ​​also tough, if he wants to win the five Monuments, but I can see him winning Roubaix before Milano-Sanremo," Kelly said in an interview with Daniel Benson. "Just look at the amount of riders coming over the Poggio. It’s going to be so tough for him to make a difference on the Poggio. And where else can he do it? I think this is the toughest race for him.”

Whilst Pogacar will certainly not race Paris-Roubaix this spring, he will aim to peak for Sanremo. The risks involved with Roubaix are very big for a rider who usually has goals in the Ardennes but also later in the summer at the Grand Tours, and an injury could risk major goals. Although he has shown the talent in the cobbles and classics - including flat ones - we don't know when he will make his debut in 'The Hell of the North'.

Sanremo is a certainty unless he is unfit in the spring, but Kelly believes that “the terrain there isn’t right for that. Unless it’s a really bad day, with wet and cold conditions, and everyone arrives empty at the Poggio, I don’t think it’s the terrain where he can do it. Or he has to show something magical again.” In 2023 and 2024 Pogacar has attacked the Poggio, but has either been matched or dropped by Mathieu van der Poel.

It's a classic where everything has to fit in the right place and UAE will likely put more emphasis in this race with their lineup, outlining a specific strategy to improve his chances as much as possible. “Winning the Tour of Flanders is one thing, but Paris-Roubaix is ​​a step higher. But I think he is capable of it," he concluded.