{"id":379655,"date":"2025-12-30T04:34:08","date_gmt":"2025-12-30T04:34:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/379655\/"},"modified":"2025-12-30T04:34:08","modified_gmt":"2025-12-30T04:34:08","slug":"tadej-pogacar-again-aims-for-roubaix-win-with-help-from-f1-driver-sainz-know-im-in-good-hands","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/379655\/","title":{"rendered":"Tadej Pogacar again aims for Roubaix win… With help from F1 driver Sainz? ‘Know I’m in good hands’"},"content":{"rendered":"

The big cycling question for 2026 is simple: can Tadej Pogacar<\/a> get any better than he was last season? The world champion enjoyed what seemed like an untouchable year, but everyone knows the Slovenian phenomenon will do everything he can to push the limits once again. Just before the turn of the year, Pogacar spoke about his drive, his motivation, and what still keeps him so hungry in one of the toughest sports in the world.\u201cI\u2019ve loved cycling ever since I started racing in 2008,\u201d Pogacar told Sky Sports<\/a>. \u201cEven when I was riding at the back, I kept thinking about how beautiful this sport is, and I never wanted to stop. Every year things get better; last year was practically perfect, and it will be difficult to top it next season. But I don\u2019t think about that. I enjoy the moment and approach every race the same way: I give my best, we\u2019ll see what the final result is, and the rest doesn\u2019t matter.\u201d<\/p>\n

His already impressive palmar\u00e8s can always be expanded, but Pogacar says he has made peace with his career as it stands. \u201cIf, for whatever reason, I had to stop racing today, I would be very happy with what I\u2019ve achieved in my career. I\u2019ve reached a point where I have nothing left to win or lose.\u201d<\/p>\n

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

\"tadej-pogacar\"\/Three Grand Tours in one year? \u201cToo many days away from home\u201d<\/p>\n

Whatever his motivation, Pogacar has set himself plenty of goals for the coming season. One thing seems certain: he will not ride all three Grand Tours in the same year. Many fans believe that, if he wanted to, he could win the Giro d’Italia, the Tour de France and the Vuelta a Espa\u00f1a all in one calendar year. But would he ever want to try?<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not easy: besides the 21 stages per race, there\u2019s also all the travel\u2026 and it\u2019s too many days away from home,\u201d he laughs. \u201cIt\u2019s far more realistic to ride all five Monument Classics in the same season. But never say never \u2013 maybe one day I\u2019ll try to ride all the Grand Tours in one year. We\u2019ll see what the future brings.\u201d<\/p>\n

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

\"tadej-pogacar-urska-zigart-2\"\/Roubaix again \u2013 with help from Formula 1 driver Carlos Sainz?One thing he will definitely do is return to Paris-Roubaix<\/a>. It is one of his biggest goals, especially after his bitter \u2013 yet brilliant \u2013 experience there this year. \u201cOf course I have great memories from many races, but I want to mention one that I didn\u2019t win and that I rode for the first time in my life: Paris-Roubaix, an indescribable and unique classic.\u201dPogacar also had warm words for the special people in his life, and in particular his partner Urska Zigart<\/a>. \u201cWithout her, I think it would have been much harder to achieve my success. I can only thank her enormously for the way we have been there for each other in every phase of our careers and our lives. Simply fantastic.\u201dCarlos Sainz, too, received a shower of praise. The Spaniard and the Slovenian often ride together<\/a> and get along well, but Pogacar reveals that Sainz plays a bigger role than many might expect. \u201cA good friend\u2026 and a great strategist,\u201d says Pogacar. \u201cI know I\u2019m in good hands for Milano-Sanremo and Roubaix, and that it\u2019s going to be fun!\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The big cycling question for 2026 is simple: can Tadej Pogacar get any better than he was last…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":379656,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[569],"tags":[64,63,784,85,6494,19805,58186],"class_list":{"0":"post-379655","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-sports","12":"tag-tadej-pogacar","13":"tag-uae-team-emirates-xrg","14":"tag-urska-zigart"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/379655","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=379655"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/379655\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/379656"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=379655"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=379655"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=379655"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}