Pogacar pulls, pushes, and pounds on the Cipressa and Poggio, but Van der Poel holds firm and takes stunning victory in Milan-San Remo

Milan-San Remo has been won for the second time by Mathieu van der Poel. Tadej Pogacar blew the race apart on the Cipressa with a thunderous attack, which only the eventual winner and Filippo Ganna could follow. After an all-out battle on the Poggio, it came down to a sprint between the three, where the 2023 winner came out on top.

From the start in Pavia, the weather left much to be desired. It was cold and soaking wet: the riders were layered up. To warm up (and give their teams some exposure), three riders broke away: Mathis Le Berre (Arkéa B&B Hotels), Tommaso Nencini (Team Solution Tech - Vini Fantini), and Martin Marcellusi (VF Group - Bardiani CSF - Faizanè) went up the road but were later joined by five more. Vini Fantini sent two more riders—Mark Stewart and Kristian Sbaragli—while Bardiani and Arkéa also added two each, with Filippo Turconi and Alessandro Verre. They were joined by Baptiste Veistroffer (Lotto).

Together, they built a four-minute lead, but Silvan Dillier made sure it didn’t grow any further. The Alpecin-Deceuninck domestique, just like last year, took responsibility for keeping the gap in check—and did so impressively. Meanwhile, the rain had stopped, and as the race progressed, the sun even started to shine. The riders shed their extra layers, and the pace picked up with the climbs in the finale approaching. On the Capi, Marcellusi broke away from his fellow escapees, but the gap shrank quickly, as the peloton was now moving at full speed.

Read more below the video!

Pogacar blows everything apart on the Cipressa

Another acceleration near the top briefly cracked Ganna again, but the Italian rarely fades completely. Van der Poel didn’t want to take over the pace-setting, so the three crested the climb together. The gap to the chasing group was over half a minute and only grew during the descent. On the flat run-in to the Poggio, the trio worked well together, and the fight for the podium seemed all but settled—only the order still had to be determined. The chasers tried, but at the foot of the Poggio, they were already a full minute behind.

Read more below the video!

Van der Poel vs. Pogacar, a magical duel on the Poggio

Right away, it was Pogacar who unleashed his fury. He had no intention of waiting and immediately launched an attack. Van der Poel followed, while Ganna tried to keep up at his own pace. Van der Poel didn’t crack and also didn’t take over the lead, so the world champion briefly eased off. The big Italian nearly made it back, but Pogacar wouldn’t allow it—another acceleration from the Slovenian. He was giving it absolutely everything, and while the Alpecin-Deceuninck leader looked to be struggling for a moment, he impressively held on.

In the final kilometer of the climb, Pogacar launched two more attacks, but he just couldn’t shake the 2023 winner. That’s when Van der Poel made his move. Just below the summit, he accelerated—but Pogacar was quick to respond. So the two began the descent together, with a small lead of about 10 seconds over Ganna. Everything was still up for grabs in the final stretch.

After the descent, Pogacar and Van der Poel continued to work well together, making it incredibly difficult for the powerful Italian to close the gap. Little by little, he edged closer, and some hesitation in the final kilometer eventually brought the trio back together. It came down to a sprint between the three, with Van der Poel launching first. With a remarkable burst, he beat the other two and claimed his second La Primavera win, ahead of Ganna and Pogacar.

Results Milan-San Remo 2025

Read also

Gilbert doesn't spare Vingegaard: "He tried to hide behind others, as always"

Van der Poel beats Pogacar in thrilling finale: "An honor to stand on the podium with them"

Armstrong hits back hard: "My rivals cheated too, and some have been completely destroyed by it"

Subscribe to our Newsletter

Get every week the latest news about CYCLING in your inbox!

Subscribe