{"id":546239,"date":"2026-03-17T13:17:12","date_gmt":"2026-03-17T13:17:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/546239\/"},"modified":"2026-03-17T13:17:12","modified_gmt":"2026-03-17T13:17:12","slug":"that-actually-makes-it-a-little-scary-tadej-pogacar-on-the-key-moment-in-milan-sanremo","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/546239\/","title":{"rendered":"\u201cThat actually makes it a little scary\u201d; Tadej Pogacar on the key moment in Milan\u2013Sanremo"},"content":{"rendered":"

Saturday is the day: the first showdown between Tadej Pogacar<\/a> and Mathieu van der Poel<\/a> of the spring cycling season. The winner of the Omloop Het Nieuwsblad looked ahead to Milan-Sanremo during Tirreno-Adriatico, just as his Slovenian counterpart had done after his victory in his first race<\/a> of the season: Strade Bianche<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Van der Poel has already won La Primavera twice, while Pogacar is still chasing his first victory in Sanremo. The Slovenian reiterated in Siena that, as far as he\u2019s concerned, Milan-Sanremo is the hardest race to win.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s completely different from Strade Bianche, the Omloop, Flanders, or any other spring race,\u201d said the UAE Emirates-XRG team leader.<\/p>\n

\u201cUntil we reach the coast, it\u2019s a very easy race. But then it immediately gets extremely tense, from the moment we hit the coast,\u201d said Pogacar. \u201cIt\u2019s constantly left, right, through villages at high speed.\u201d<\/p>\n

In the final, positioning is crucial, he knows. \u201cThe run-in to Cipressa in particular is very dangerous, partly because all the strong riders\u2014classic types, sprinters, and riders like me\u2014want to be at the front. That actually makes it a bit scary,\u201d he admits honestly.<\/p>\n

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

Del Toro supports PogacarOn that climb this year, Pogacar is missing Tim Wellens and Jhonatan Narvaez, who were sidelined by injury\u2014the riders who gave him a boost in previous seasons. Instead, Florian Vermeersch, who scouted the final stretch again on Sunday<\/a>, and Isaac del Toro are on hand.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve been in Van der Poel\u2019s slipstream a lot this week; maybe that will help in Milan-Sanremo,\u201d the Mexican said after winning Tirreno-Adriatico. \u201cI\u2019m riding for Tadej and not for my own result. Narvaez and Wellens won\u2019t be there, so I want to do my best as a teammate.\u201d<\/p>\n

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

Pogacar: \u201cYou have to give it 110 percent\u201d<\/p>\n

Del Toro will likely take on that role on the Cipressa, where Pogacar explained it further. \u201cOnce you get to the Cipressa, 100 percent isn\u2019t enough. You have to give it 110 percent to make a difference.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd that also applies to the Poggio, where you need even more than 110 percent. We\u2019re climbing those ascents at 40 kilometers per hour, so it\u2019s advantageous to be in the wheel,\u201d the Slovenian knows from experience in recent years, when he couldn\u2019t shake off Van der Poel.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd then you have to descend to Sanremo, which is a technical descent. All in all, it\u2019s a very unusual race, but that\u2019s exactly what makes it interesting. And beautiful.\u201d<\/p>\n