Tiesj Benoot winning Strade Bianche 2018 and now the new Decathlon CMA CGM Team rider has urged others not to work with Tadej Pogačar or Mathieu van der Poel in the classics (Photo: Fabio Ferrari)
Tiesj Benoot (Decathlon CMA CGM Team) has urged other riders not to work with Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) or Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Premier Tech) in the classics, or ride on the front when they are around.
The Belgian, who has just left Visma-Lease a Bike, said Pogačar and van der Poel were now such strong riders, especially in the classics, anyone who contributed to the workload in a group with them was effectively opting out of the race for victory.
The 2018 Strade Bianche and 2023 Kuurne-Brussel-Kuurne winner, who has also finished 3rd twice at Amstel Gold and 7th at Liège-Bastogne-Liège and La Flèche Wallonne, said he could not understand why riders who could clearly not match the big two were so often willing to take on the workload.
“We all have to stop riding at the front when Van der Poel and Pogacar are there. I don’t understand that. In my opinion, that’s racing for second place: if you even start helping them…” he told Indeleiderstrui.
He cited the example of Il Lombardia last year, where Pogačar still won but a group went clear early and took the fight to him. Quinn Simmons (Lidl Trek) was the last man standing in the breakaway, before finally being caught.
Benoot said the way Simmons, and his Lidl Trek team mate Mads Pedersen, raced may be the way to take on the very strongest riders.
“Now that Pogačar has started riding the classics and van der Poel has taken a big step, it’s almost become a utopia for many riders. But something can happen to them, and of course, they don’t ride everything,” he added.
However, aside from discussing Pogačar and van der Poel, Benoot said now that he had moved team, he believed it had riders who could win a lot of race. He was especiallu looking forward to riding for sprinter Olav Kooij and up-and-coming GC man, French teenager Paul Seixas.
“In the Tour, I didn’t have any personal ambitions at Visma | Lease a Bike, because it was also a personal goal to win the race with Jonas Vingegaard. That will change here, because we’ll be going with Olav Kooij as a sprinter and a few stage breakers.
“But just try winning a transition stage like that in the Tour: on those days, there are 100 riders raring to go. It’s different, physiologically as well, than a classic.”
He said of Seixas: “He’s still only 19 years old. The potential is there, otherwise you wouldn’t finish third at the European Championships behind Pogacar and Evenepoel.”