Can anyone stop Pogačar on Sunday? 📸 SWPix.
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The Tour of Flanders returns on Sunday as the highlight of the Belgian Spring Classics, bringing together the strongest one-day riders in the world for a race that rarely lacks drama or excitement.
Over 270 kilometres of cobbles, climbs, and constant tension, the contenders will be pushed to their limits, with only the very best able to shape the finale as defending champion Tadej Pogačar searches for his third title.
This year’s edition once again revolves around a familiar cast of names, including the Slovenian, Mathieu van der Poel, Wout van Aert, and now Remco Evenepoel, but, as ever in Flanders, opportunity still exists for those willing to anticipate, endure, and take risks.
Here are five key contenders, and five wildcards to watch.
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The Slovenian’s record in the race matches his already exemplary palmarès, with two wins from three starts; his only defeat came on debut in 2022, when he was outwitted in the sprint. Since then, Pogacar has used the Kwaremont as his launchpad for victory, and on Sunday, he will once again line up as the outright favourite for the win.
His form entering the race has seen him dominate Strade Bianche and then bulldoze the opposition to secure his first victory at Milan-San Remo, setting him on a possible path to winning all five Monuments in a single season.
Throughout the build-up to this race, there hasn’t been an air of complete resignation about the possible outcome on Sunday, but speak to most of the world champions’ competitors, and they’ll tell you that Pogačar is the clear favourite.
Does that mean he’s unbeatable? Not quite. Pogačar is still competing against world-class opposition, and although he is the only five-star favourite, anything can happen – such as a lack of concentration, bad luck, poor tactics, or overconfidence – traits we’ve seen from favourites in the past.
The route, however, favours climbers, and Pogačar is the best of the best in that regard. His positioning these days, along with his aura, strong teammates, and experience, puts him head and shoulders above the rest. If Van der Poel or another rider can manage to hang on, then perhaps the UAE leader can be beaten in a sprint. But if he starts attacking on the first ascent of the Kwaremont, the race could be over very early. If you asked me whether a Pogačar loss is more likely or if UAE would put two riders on the podium on Sunday, I’d probably lean towards the latter.
Earlier this week, I caught up with Pogačar’s sports director, Fabio Baldato, one-on-one here in Belgium.
“Going towards Flanders, we have one man and one leader. Van der Poel is at a good level, and we’ve seen in the last few races that he’s gone from far in E3, and he was in the front at Gent-Wevelgem. It’s more important for us to keep Tadej safe until the end of the race. When we keep him safe until the end, that’s the most difficult part of the job, and then he can do his race, and we’ll see,” the Italian told me.
I asked whether there was a scenario in which teams, knowing they had limited options in a straight-up fight, simply tried to prevent Pogačar from winning rather than reading from the expected script and settling for minor placings.
“It could be. In most of the cases, the teams behind look for the best position behind Van der Poel or Tadej. That can happen, and if it’s a difficult situation, then others can sit on the wheel and make you do the work. I’m more afraid of this scene, not really that the team go against [us] but that they give us all the responsibility to bring the race to the right way,” he added.