Wednesday was a busy day for the road cycling world champion Tadej Pogacar. While out on a 3-hour training ride on the coastline near Valencia, the Slovenian had an unpleasant encounter with one of his fans, a story he later shared with the rest of the world via his Strava post.
For most, the headline story dragged away all the attention, however those who dug deeped uncovered a tough training session with recorded speed of 41 kph on a 130-kilometer ride. Definitely the type of effort Pogacar will be expected to deliver to win through one of his iconic solo rides. But that's still not all.
UAE Team Emirates - XRG are usually quite strict with keeping Pogacar's power data a bit of a secret, with the only reliable information to go by being Pogacar's interview
on The Peter Attia Drive Podcast in 2024, stating that his Zone 2 power, at the time, was between 320 and 340 watts.
However in his latest Strava upload, the Slovenian left this crucial information public to view.
For a long time, it's been estimated that Pogacar's threshold power (also known as FTP) was around 415 watts. This was based on calculations of his in-race efforts and listed weight of 66 kilograms. But what lacked until now was a solid proof. Until yesterday.
Strava app automatically analyzes every ride being uploaded by its users equipped with power sensors, which is the case for almost any professional these days. In return, it generates a rough estimate on one's power zones. This piece of information can be made public or private with a simple click.
A closer look into Pogacar's Strava power file shows a zone distribution as follows:
- Z1 (recovery): 0-236 W
- Z2 (endurance): 237-322 W
- Z3 (tempo): 323-387 W
- Z4 (threshold): 387-451 W
- Z5 (VO2Max): 452-516 W
- Z6 (Anaerobic): 516-645 W
- Z7 (Neuromuscular): 645+ W
In his training, Pogacar spend most of the time alternating between zones 3 (100 minutes) and 2 (60 minutes), averaging 303 watts. This value is on the higher end of Pogacar's Z2, however we shouldn't simply assume this has been an "easy Z2 ride" from the numbers alone.
"If you're doing a five-hour ride, your zone two after five hours may not be your zone two anymore," Pogacar further explained how the zones can change even during the same ride. "On the flat you will not recover, and five hours of riding 320-340 [watts] for me also means that the next day I’m not riding my bike. So when going on the flat for longer, I drop my power to 290-300."
What is more intriguing is the estimate of Pogacar's threshold zone in which the predicted value of 415 watts falls exactly in the middle of the interval, indirectly verifying the analysts' assumption.
Heart monitor over power meter
However Pogacar points out that we shouldn't rely on power meters too much, as the devices are prone to generate inacurracies due to the many factors they use to calculate data. Rather, the Slovenian prefers to trust his heart rate monitor, which showed a steady average of 144 beats per minute across the entire effort.
"I’ve been training with a heart rate monitor since I was 12 years old," he said. "I could go by heart rate only, but it’s always good to compare heart rate to power."
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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- Seriously do you think when somebody gets into a serious accident, the ambulance is called by the hurt person?🤦 there is always a buddy system in place for a risky job. police , firefighters etc so that if someone gets hurt, the other call that in.abstractengineer07-11-2026
- I get the point totally. We live in the snowflake society where some riders forget they are getting paid to ride and get results. When they have a few issues they try to look outside of the real issue instead of themselves. It odd so many of the team are making no complaints and getting on with their job. If you do not like what you do find another job simples. Tough love as my mum would say.paultryan200207-11-2026
- many people advise him to grow slowly and rather do giro and/or vuelta instead of tdf. but i can totally understand that he is not satisfied with taking over once pogi declines, but instead beat him in his prime. so if he goes for tdf again, i‘m all for it. let‘s hope that pogi recovers soon!Ketterechts07-11-2026
- So gracious to offer something no-one would be prepared to pay for. The Giro is not the Tour and doesn’t command the same interest or attract the same “elite” (those willing to pay to be a part of something they consider has ego boosting potential). Roadside viewing will always largely remain free for everyone outside circuits. Introduction of a symbolic entrance to mountain climbs is worthy of exploration. Asking 1-2€ isn’t going to repulse real fans (most will spend 50-100€ on their outing that day all things included) but will prevent a portion of the total knobhead thrillseekers who will join in any large gathering as long as it’s free, just because they’re attracted to crowds, without which it it difficult for them to work up their anti-social behaviour.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- How is radio going to help when someone went over a cliff or bridge or off the roadside into a forest unnoticed and is laying there unconscious?Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- Yep, next we’ll be accusing F1 drivers of avoiding Le Mans.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- But on what is that opinion based? Are you holding him to a different standard than others? Are you saying he should do learn to like something he doesn’t Are you saying he hasn’t achieved enough Are you saying he pretends to be better than his results? It’s actually a really strange opinion to oust if you consider it objectively or rationally. Try applying it to others or yourself by asking if not EVERYONE should then be doing more? Nobody in athletics or swimming gets criticism for not expanding their repertoire when a rival or someone else does. In fact, most who move to another event get accused of running from their rival. Opinions are boring, the reasons behind them are what count.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- for a medical chief to throw things like is just bad. There are already radios which were banned for spectacle. allow radios. Gps trackers are not a complete solutionabstractengineer07-11-2026
- any rider less than 25 whether they are really ready for the position of leadership of GT is probably not the case. I think Pogi himself suffered when he was defeated by Jonas in the TDF twice. But that would be the team's job to ensure support so that they can bounce back. It requires a team and time to get back up and win after getting knocked down.abstractengineer07-11-2026
- I'm very glad he got the big late Quickstep Vuelta win and I hope he has a few left for Euskaltel-Euskadi.flyer07-11-2026
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