"There is no race anymore" - Zonneveld on Pogacar's Suisse dominance and Tour de France worries
Cycling
Is the fight for the overall victory at the Tour de Suisse over after just one day? Whilst Tadej Pogacar was the main favourite to win the Swiss opener into Sondrio, the way in which he did it caught most - and even himself - by surprise. But to the race's spectacle and tension, that is not good, according to Thijs Zonneveld.
"He gains seconds on a small climb, he pushes a bit, and that's it. No one makes a desperate attempt anymore, or a team starts riding at the front," Zonneveld said on the In de Waaier podcast. "No, he rides to the finish at training pace. He was still as fresh as a daisy."
The Dutch pundit did not enjoy seeing a day which was decided by an attack that was not on the writing board at UAE Team Emirates - XRG's bus. Whilst the World Champion had the legs to make the difference, it did not seem at any moment like he was going at his limit.
"On the flats and on the descents, he just sits there looking around a bit. This was far from an all-out effort. In Romandie, he still tried to hold back. He sort of tried that today too, but it wasn't enough to let anyone catch up".
Tadej Pogacar in the midst of his solo attack on stage 1 of the Tour de Suisse
Pogacar not chased by his rivals
The gap grew, despite the terrain allowing for there to be some sort of chase and despite the Slovenian's apparent ease. That has a simple explanation for Zonneveld: The lack of a chase behind after he rode away.
"It happens so easily... Bagioli (third on the day, ed.) could also ride away from the group by a minute and a half. Everyone gives up when Pogacar rides away by a minute. It is the consequence of such dominance".
"Carapaz tries to make a comeback a bit. He keeps it under two minutes for a while, but you only see the difference at the end." He refers to the final climb, in which Pogacar accelerated, and the difference between his legs and those of Carapaz behind were very noticeable.
"On that last little climb, Pogacar does 3:15 and Carapaz 3:51. He had to push hard there because it was 12%. That is when you see how much better he is. He didn't keep going at all on the flat. If he had wanted to, he could have put four minutes between himself and Carapaz."
Is the Tour de Suisse anticipating what will happen at the Tour de France?
The fight for the podium has definitely been lit up, and several GC men such as Lenny Martínez, Antonio Tiberi and Aleksandr Vlasov were amongst the many who have lost full contact with the GC fight. Mathieu van der Poel was also absent from the action as a result of the explosive stage.
When it comes to the yellow jersey anymore, Zonneveld believes the race didn't even last a few hours. "There is no race anymore. It is so incredibly demotivating," he puts it bluntly.
"And especially when there are also three from UAE on your wheel (McNulty, Wellens and Narváez, ed.). If you keep riding at full speed, those are numbers 2, 3, and 4 at the finish line. You really get knocked out."
With the Tour de France ahead, Pogacar's form seems to be on point and so does that of his UAE teammates. If his rivals do not take a step in their evolution towards this summer, it could be another one-man show at the Grand Boucle's mountains.
"It is worrying if you want to see an entertaining Tour. It will be different, but the chance of Pogacar winning is, of course, huge. A lot of crazy things happen in the Tour, but Pogacar has so much in reserve that he can handle a lot of crazy things."
Rúben SilvaEditor-in-Chief
A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
Beyond editorial work, he has been closely involved in the expansion and coordination of CyclingUpToDate’s wider network, helping establish and support sister platforms across multiple languages. This includes ongoing collaboration with CiclismoAlDia (Spanish), CiclismoAtual (Portuguese), WielrennenUpToDate (Dutch), and RadsportAktuell (German), contributing to a shared editorial vision and consistent international coverage.
He also helps oversee editorial governance across the network, setting standards for accuracy and consistency and coordinating updates or corrections when needed.
Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
Within 18 months of launch, he helped grow CyclingUpToDate’s English-language platform into one of the most-read cycling news websites, built entirely from the ground up. As both a professional journalist and lifelong cycling enthusiast, his focus remains on delivering accurate, timely, and well-contextualized coverage.
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- 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
- Yeah man...PogiSloFans07-11-2026
- 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
- My memories of Ivan Basso aren't good but I liked his sister Elisa ok.flyer07-11-2026
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