{"id":331211,"date":"2025-12-06T15:03:07","date_gmt":"2025-12-06T15:03:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/331211\/"},"modified":"2025-12-06T15:03:07","modified_gmt":"2025-12-06T15:03:07","slug":"would-marc-madiot-rather-have-van-aert-in-his-team-than-pogacar-i-am-actually-not-an-absolute-fan-of-tadej-pogacar","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/331211\/","title":{"rendered":"Would Marc Madiot rather have Van Aert in his team than Pogacar? ‘I am actually not an absolute fan of Tadej Pogacar’"},"content":{"rendered":"

If you want an unfiltered cycling opinion, Marc Madiot<\/a> is always a reliable source. The French Groupama\u2013FDJ team boss never hides what he thinks \u2014 whether the topic is doping or the quality of a local bakery\u2019s croissants. And when it comes to Tadej Pogacar<\/a>, the former pro is just as bluntly honest.<\/p>\n

Fans may remember Madiot for his heated dispute with Visma | Lease a Bike, after Richard Plugge spotted a Groupama\u2013FDJ rider with a beer during the Tour de France. Or for his criticism of big-money sponsors who, in his words, \u201ccrush the market\u201d. But when asked about the world champion, Madiot becomes notably modest.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am impressed by his mental strength,\u201d he said at the V\u00e9lo d\u2019Or gala<\/a> in Paris, where Pogavar claimed his third title in a row<\/a>. \u201cWhen he starts a race, it is never just to participate. Moreover, Tadej has a sense for the sport\u2019s history. He respects the value of cycling\u2019s great events. Chapeau. We must support him and encourage him.\u201d<\/p>\n

Continue reading below the video!<\/p>\n

Madiot: ‘Pogacar is a beautiful symbol for cycling’<\/p>\n

What Madiot particularly admires in the Slovenian is his desire to race – everywhere, not only in the Grand Tours. “In the press, people sometimes write: \u2018Why would he start in Roubaix? He shouldn\u2019t take risks before the Tour\u2026\u2019 No, I do not agree. In his career, winning Roubaix would be just as important as the Tour. I hope he can win the race one day.\u201d The Frenchman himself won The Hell of the North twice.<\/p>\n

Madiot believes the cycling world should cherish Pogacar, his dominance and all. \u201cTadej is a beautiful symbol for cycling,\u201d He states. Then he pauses.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am actually not an absolute fan of Tadej Pogacar.\u201d
\nSo who is his favourite rider? His answer is quick and sharp. \u201cMy chouchou is Wout. For me, he is the ultimate rider.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"If you want an unfiltered cycling opinion, Marc Madiot is always a reliable source. The French Groupama\u2013FDJ team…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":331212,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[569],"tags":[64,63,784,182181,85,6494,58412],"class_list":{"0":"post-331211","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-cycling","8":"tag-au","9":"tag-australia","10":"tag-cycling","11":"tag-marc-madiot","12":"tag-sports","13":"tag-tadej-pogacar","14":"tag-wout-van-aert"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/331211","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=331211"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/331211\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/331212"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=331211"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=331211"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=331211"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}