Thomas on Pogacar vs. van der Poel in Paris-Roubaix: "In the Tour he will have a three-hour lead"

"It just makes you sick, doesn't it?," the former Tour winner said, amazed after seeing Pogacar's performance in the Hell of the North. "He's unreal. He can compete with probably, and that is a big compliment, one of the best Monument or classic cobblestone riders ever, namely Mathieu van der Poel," Thomas praised the Dutch rider from Alpecin-Deceuninck, who won Paris-Roubaix for the third year in a row on Sunday.

Van der Poel can count on even more praise from the INEOS Grenadiers rider. "If you had put him with Tom Boonen or Fabian Cancellara in the past, I honestly think I would have bet on van der Poel. He is already being mentioned as one of the best cobblestone racers ever," said Thomas, who will end his professional cycling career after this season.

According to Thomas, what makes it even more impressive is that Pogacar can compete with Van der Poel. "Pogi is right up there with him, and then in July, Pogi has a three-hour lead over Van der Poel in the Alps and the Pyrenees," the British rider explains the difference between the two that will be seen in the Tour de France. "He is one of the best riders in a grand tour ever. It's just amazing." His friend Rowe agrees. "What he does is just ludicrous," says the current assistant sports director of Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale.

Pogacar won a race he didn't even compete in, which has a nice consequence for Thomas. "He's coming back to Paris-Roubaix, right? Now that he has come so close to victory, he will surely think: I want to win that race too." Pogacar has also not yet won Milan-Sanremo, although he did finish on the podium again this year. "Then, if he manages to do the same in Liège-Bastogne-Liège and the Tour of Lombardy, he will have finished on the podium of all five Monuments of the year," Thomas notes. "I don't know if that's ever been done before." A quick scan of Eddy Merckx's record shows that the Cannibal has never been able to accomplish that. And if Merckx couldn't do it..."

If Pogacar were to win the Tour de France in July, the Slovenian world champion would succeed Thomas. The British rider from INEOS Grenadiers was the last cyclist to compete in Paris-Roubaix and win the Tour de France in the same season. Thomas did just that in 2018. He did not finish in Roubaix, but he won the Tour ahead of Tom Dumoulin and his teammate Chris Froome.