Tadej Pogacar returns to Amstel Gold Race as Ardennes Classics campaign begins: “We leave the cobbled Classics with our heads high”

Just one week after a remarkable debut at Paris-Roubaix where he finished second, Tadej Pogacar is set to launch his 2025 Ardennes Classics campaign this Sunday at the Amstel Gold Race.

The reigning world champion returns to a race he won in memorable fashion back in 2023 and will once again lead UAE Team Emirates – XRG across the Dutch hills. He’ll be supported by a mix of experienced riders and emerging talent: Mikkel Bjerg (Denmark), Vegard Stake Laengen (Norway), António Morgado (Portugal), Jhonatan Narváez (Ecuador), Florian Vermeersch (Belgium), and Gen Z duo Duarte Merivoet and Gibbe Staes (both Belgium).

In a team press release, Pogacar reflected on the team's spring so far and looked ahead to the week to come, “We leave the cobbled Classics with our heads high, I think we can be happy with what we did there and there were some great battles on the road."

Looking toward the challenges of the Ardennes, he added, “The Ardennes races will be a new challenge. They are three hard one-day races packed into a week but I feel we have the team to be able to challenge in each of them. But we will take it one race at a time starting with Amstel Gold and go from there."

His win in 2023 came via a commanding solo move that dropped even the strongest contenders, “In that race I have some great memories from two years ago when I managed to win, let’s see what’s possible this year.”

That year, Pogacar launched a long-range attack and held off podium rivals Tom Pidcock and Ben Healy, eventually crossing the line solo. This year, he’ll be the favourite again but will be up against Pidcock, Wout van Aert, and the returning Remco Evenepoel. Evenepoel has not raced since Il Lombardia last October, and it will be interesting see how his legs are.