"Tadej Pogacar & Remco Evenepoel will be favourites" – Jonas Vingegaard to lean on Skjelmose and Pedersen's one-day experience in bid for European Championship glory

Jonas Vingegaard is preparing to swap Grand Tour dominance for a different kind of challenge: the one-day cauldron of the European Championships. The Dane, fresh from sealing overall victory at the 2025 Vuelta a Espana, has admitted he will lean heavily on the experience of Mads Pedersen and Mattias Skjelmose as he ventures into relatively unfamiliar terrain.

“Based on the start list as it stands, it has to be Tadej Pogacar and Remco Evenepoel. They’re the biggest favourites,” Vingegaard said in quotes collected by Feltet from a press conference ahead of the 5 October race in France’s Ardèche. “I’ll be leaning on Mads and Mattias. They’re really strong in one-day races, so I’ll be learning a lot from them and gaining experience that way. There’s a lot of know-how in the Danish team.”

Despite being a two-time Tour de France winner and now a Vuelta champion, Vingegaard has rarely made his mark in single-day races. His most recent outing in such a setting ended in a DNF at the 2024 Clásica San Sebastián. It is a record he himself acknowledges. “I’ve always struggled with one-day races, so this is a new kind of test to see if I can handle it,” the 28-year-old admitted. “Of course, it’s probably not a major goal for my 2025 season. I’ve said yes to it, but I’m not going there to be placed first.”

At the same time, Vingegaard recognises the value of building experience – and insists the Europeans are the right place to start. “The more one-day races you ride, the more experienced you become. I have to start somewhere, and now I’m starting with the European Championships,” he explained.

The road race in Ardèche promises to be punishing: 203 kilometres and close to 3,500 metres of climbing, with the finishing laps featuring the Val d’Enfer – a brutal 1.6-kilometre ascent averaging 9.7 percent. It is a parcours that should suit both Vingegaard and his expected rival Pogacar.

Danish national coach Michael Morkov has been unequivocal about the target. “The expectation can’t be anything less than for him to be European champion,” he told Feltet. “When you have a rider like Jonas, who has won the Tour twice and almost always finished on the podium, you can’t set the bar any lower than victory. That’s the clear ambition – even if Pogacar comes, which we expect he will.”

The main unknown is how Vingegaard will respond just three weeks after his exertions in Spain. His Vuelta triumph came despite illness mid-race. “I spoke to him the day after the Vuelta. Despite coming off a long and gruelling Grand Tour, he said he was really looking forward to racing with the national team – which is great to hear,” said Morkov. “Of course, there’s always a risk, and championships are decided on the day’s form. But right now, he’s in fantastic condition, and I have full confidence he’ll be strong when we get to the Europeans.”

Vingegaard himself is cautious about predicting what his form will allow. “I think it’s hard to set any expectations. I’ve done two Grand Tours, and I don’t really know where I’ll be. I’m in good shape now and trying to maintain it, but you never know if it’ll be good enough,” he reflected.

For all his palmarès, Vingegaard has not yet stamped his authority on the one-day scene. The European Championships represent both a test and an opportunity: to pit himself against Pogacar and Evenepoel on a course designed for climbers, and to begin building the kind of experience he hopes will one day make him a contender beyond the stage races.

“I’m not lining up just to ride,” he said. “I’ll do everything I can to deliver a top result.”

Whether fatigue or inexperience proves decisive, the sight of Vingegaard trading Grand Tour endurance for one-day intensity is one of the most intriguing storylines of the European Championships.