“Tadej Pogacar could be the greatest rider of all time, but I hope to see more rivals” – Peter Sagan points to Remco Evenepoel as the answer to cycling’s imbalance

For all the dominance modern cycling has witnessed in recent seasons, Peter Sagan believes the sport still needs something more than admiration for greatness. It needs opposition.

Speaking recently to Tutto Bici Web, Sagan did not shy away from the scale of the challenge posed by Tadej Pogacar, suggesting the Slovenian “could even be the greatest rider of all time”.

Yet the three-time world champion was just as clear about what cycling lacks in the here and now: genuine, sustained rivalry at the very top.

That is where Remco Evenepoel enters Sagan’s thinking. Not as a guaranteed conqueror of Pogacar, but as the rider best placed to prevent the sport tipping into a prolonged era of inevitability.

Sagan’s assessment is rooted less in sentiment than in observation. He has watched Evenepoel closely since his early WorldTour seasons, recalling encounters as far back as San Juan in 2020, when the Belgian’s power and personality already set him apart from his peers.

“What impressed me was that you could already see he was different,” Sagan recalled. “He had a very strong personality and a winning mentality. No matter how important the race is, he is there to win.”

That mindset, rather than any single result, is what Sagan believes separates Evenepoel from the wider chasing pack. In a peloton increasingly defined by optimisation and control, the Belgian’s instinct to impose himself remains his defining trait.

Crucially, Sagan also sees Evenepoel’s move to Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe as a decisive moment in that trajectory. In his view, the Belgian now has access to the depth, structure and resources required to turn intent into a consistent challenge.

“I hope that the move to Red Bull helps him close the gap,” Sagan said. “A talent like Remco can win everything, whether it’s a Grand Tour or a Monument. But it depends on the choices he makes.”

That belief has been reinforced by Evenepoel’s opening weeks of the 2026 season. His start in new colours has been emphatic rather than flashy: victories across the Challenge Mallorca series, authority in stage race racing, and a visible sense of control within his new environment. It has not been framed internally as a peak, but as confirmation that preparation and structure are aligning.

Those results matter not because they rewrite the Tour de France hierarchy in February, but because they support Sagan’s broader point. Cycling’s imbalance is not solved by hype or isolated performances. It is addressed when riders show the capacity to return, again and again, with the belief and tools to challenge the sport’s benchmark.

Sagan is careful on that front. He does not suggest Pogacar’s dominance is easily broken. In fact, he stresses the opposite. “Beating him is extremely difficult,” he said. “At the moment, he is far superior to everyone else.”

Yet for the former green jersey winner, that reality only sharpens the need for credible opposition. A sport defined by a single reference point risks stagnation, no matter how exceptional that reference may be.

Sagan also rejects the idea that Evenepoel’s palmares should be reduced to a single metric. While the Belgian has so far won one Monument, Sagan dismisses that framing as misleading, pointing instead to world titles, Olympic gold and a Grand Tour victory as evidence of a rider whose range already stretches far beyond convention.

“I’m convinced he can win all the Monuments if he prepares specifically for them,” Sagan said.

That versatility, combined with his ambition to win the Tour de France, is precisely why Evenepoel matters to the competitive balance of the sport. He represents optionality. A rider who can choose different paths rather than being locked into one lane.

Sagan’s hope is not for Pogacar’s decline, but for resistance to his rule. More rivals. More tension. More uncertainty.

Evenepoel may or may not ultimately succeed in closing the gap that defines this era, but in Sagan’s view, he remains the rider most capable of trying. His move to Red Bull, his aggressive approach to racing, and his electric start to 2026 all point in the same direction.

For a sport increasingly shaped by dominance at the very top, that willingness to challenge may already be part of the solution.