“Starting with Tadej means we always race for the win” – Florian Vermeersch ready for key Pogacar support role at Strade Bianche

For Florian Vermeersch, lining up alongside Tadej Pogacar at Strade Bianche leaves little room for ambiguity about the team’s objective.

The Belgian is expected to play a key supporting role for the three-time winner in Tuscany this weekend, helping soften the race on the sterrato sectors before the decisive attacks that have become Pogacar’s trademark.

As Vermeersch put it ahead of the race in comments to Cycling News: “Starting with Tadej means we always race for the win.”

Few riders have left a mark on Strade Bianche quite like Pogacar in recent seasons. The Slovenian arrives in Siena chasing a potential fourth victory in the race, having already matched the record with three triumphs on the Tuscan white roads.

His dominance has often come through long-range attacks on the gravel sectors that define the race. The Monte Sante Marie section in particular has repeatedly been the launchpad for decisive moves, forcing rivals into a brutal chase across the sterrato.

Despite route changes for the 2026 edition that slightly shorten the race and reduce the total gravel distance, Vermeersch expects the same aggressive racing to unfold. “I haven't looked closely at the parcours, I think it's maybe a little different, but I think the racing will be exactly the same,” he said.

For Vermeersch, the nature of Strade Bianche makes it fundamentally different from the tactical battles that define the Belgian Classics.

Rather than complicated team manoeuvres or late race surprises, the race tends to strip things back to the strongest riders as the gravel sectors take their toll.

“They always get dropped in the back on each section, and then you end up in the final with the 20 or 30 best guys who battle it out for the win,” Vermeersch explained. “So in that regard, it's a much simpler race and tactics have less of an influence than these kinds of events in Belgium.”

The result is often a race defined more by endurance and raw strength than by tactical games.

Vermeersch arrives at Strade Bianche after a strong start to the Classics campaign, including an aggressive performance at Omloop Het Nieuwsblad.

His attack in the decisive phase of that race signalled the form he hopes to carry into the coming weeks of the spring campaign.

“Omloop just gives me a lot of confirmation that I have good legs for the upcoming weeks,” he said. “Now I can be confident that next week, my legs also will be fine.”

UAE Team Emirates - XRG will once again arrive in Tuscany with one of the strongest squads in the race. Alongside Pogacar and Vermeersch, riders such as Isaac del Toro, Jan Christen, Felix Grossschartner, Florian Vermeersch and Kevin Vermaerke give the team multiple options on the demanding gravel course.

For Vermeersch, that depth is one of the defining characteristics of the team. “I think that is true everywhere. In every race we start, we have a great team,” he said.

And when that team lines up behind Pogacar, the ambition rarely changes.

As Vermeersch summed up ahead of the race in Siena, the approach remains straightforward: when the Slovenian is on the startline, UAE ride with only one goal in mind.