Van der Poel joins eager Ganna for upcoming showdown with buddy Pogacar: "I don't fear Tadej"

Mathieu van der Poel is in top form, and the whole world should know it. The Dutch leader of Alpecin-Deceuninck starts at the Tirreno-Adriatico on Monday after his victorious return at Le Samyn. In the coming weeks, he will pursue his other major goals, and everyone, including superstar Tadej Pogacar, will have to make way for him.

The Slovenian from UAE Team Emirates-XRG had an excellent first part of the year, winning two stages and the overall title in the UAE Tour, and then his third victory was in Strade Bianche. He did so despite a brutal crash, again demonstrating Pogacar's superiority. "You need a bit of luck; that's always how it is with crashes. He almost hit a pole, but fortunately for him and cycling in general, he is not too badly hurt"; that is how Van der Poel saw on the television that he was okay.

Read more below the photo.

Pogacar cheered (battered) in Strade Bianche

Van der Poel and Pogacar sometimes exchange messages

It was not surprising, according to MVDP, that Pogacar managed to ride to victory despite the damage he had suffered. He would choose the world champion without hesitation when asked who his favorite cyclist is. "That's an easy answer. Everyone looks up to Tadej, and his strength is astonishing. He is the man of the moment in cycling. Do we ever talk to each other? We don't text every day, but we sometimes chat and have a good relationship. There is mutual respect."

However, according to Van der Poel, Pogi's superiority has a downside. He has seen a side several times in people who don't want to see a dominant athlete win. "But that's how it's always been; there's always one who stands out. That was also when Visma | Lease a Bike was so dominant, and people preferred to cheer for the underdog; that's the disadvantage of such superiority. People look at it differently when cycling; that's how it is."

Read more below the photo.

Van der Poel praised Pogacar after the Tirreno-Adriatico press conference

Van der Poel and Ganna do not fear Pogacar at all

After the Tirreno-Adriatico press conference, Van der Poel's kind words made way for eager statements, prompted by Filippo Ganna, who had spoken on behalf of INEOS Grenadiers that he was not afraid of the ruling elite in cycling today. "I get up in the morning to defeat the others. I understand what you're saying, but I just try to smash it every day, enabling me to compete with the best."

Van der Poel listened approvingly and later joined the Italian. "I'm not afraid of Tadej, but he is tough to defeat. He had dropped me once on the Tour of Flanders when I was at my best. There's no need to be ashamed of that because we see how strong he is in all his races. But I'm trying to defeat him, also in Sanremo. If you get up with the idea that you can't keep up, you'd better not start and let him ride to the finish line alone."

Read more below the photo.

Are Van der Poel and Ganna faster than Pogacar?

Van der Poel and Ganna also seem to have an advantage because both men in the Milan-Sanremo (and perhaps also Paris-Roubaix) seem to have a faster sprint. "Maybe I'll win 8 out of 10 times in a sprint, but Tadej also sprinted to the podium last year," Van der Poel qualifies." I once lost a sprint to Asgreen in the Tour of Flanders when everyone expected me to win. After a tough race, you can't be sure of anything."

"It will be difficult to beat Pogacar; he is the man to beat," Matje repeated. "The fact that he does not have that favorite role himself may be an advantage. He has also already won races like Sanremo and Roubaix to race freely. And, as he emphasized: 'In Strade Bianche, we saw that anything can happen in the race; there is always a chance to win."

Bram van der Ploeg (Twitter: @BvdPloegg | email: [email protected])     

Read also

Pidcock doesn’t fully understand why Van der Poel doubts the new Strade Bianche: "That requires different qualities"

Pogacar offers apologies to Pidcock and is brutally honest about himself despite Strade victory: "I was pretty sh*t"

Broken bones, stitches and bruises: brutal medical updates after numerous crashes in Strade Bianche

Subscribe to our Newsletter

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

Subscribe