Tadej Pogacar on Remco Evenepoel battle: "We will definitely meet"

Two of the biggest stars in the current peloton Tadej Pogacar and Remco Evenepoel have specialties that are so similar, yet they rarely race each other. The UAE Tour was set to be the stage for the first real clash since Tirreno-Adriatico, but Pogacar assures that it will happen in the near future.

"Remco must be regarded as one of the best. Becoming a world champion is one of the most beautiful things there is. We will definitely meet," Pogacar said in an interview with Gazzetta dello Sport. Pogacar was likely to defend his two consecutive titles at the UAE Tour where Evenepoel will be a headliner, however will be absent as he takes on an European start to the season.

"I have ridden the UAE Tour many times and won it twice. I know all the ways. So it was time to change something," he justified. The Clásica Jaén Paraiso Interior was the Slovenian's choice, as he comfortably took the first win of his season. As of tomorrow he will be racing the Vuelta a Andalucia where he will be putting his climbing form to a bigger test, facing the likes of Enric Mas, Mikel Landa and Tao Geoghegan Hart.

Pogacar and Evenepoel have raced against each other on a few occasions - most recently Clasica San Sebastian and World Championships, both won by the Belgian - but not often have they directly clashed. More accurately, the the two have not been at their best level since Evenepoel's massive breakthrough win at Liège-Bastogne-Liège. La Doyenne could be their next meeting, however when it comes to stage-races there is not yet a battle scheduled for the near future.