"Would have preferred the Poggio to average ten percent," Pogacar accepts defeat after heroic race

Tadej Pogacar launched countless attacks in the finale of Milan-San Remo, but in the end it wasn’t enough to win the Monument. Mathieu van der Poel and Filippo Ganna survived the Slovenian’s flurry of attacks and beat the world champion in the sprint.

UAE Team Emirates-XRG put all their cards on the table on the Cipressa. Tim Wellens kicked things off with a furious acceleration, after which Jhonatan Narváez added another burst. The peloton was stretched to the limit, and Pogacar's attack finally snapped the elastic band. The group fell apart, and only Van der Poel and Ganna managed to latch onto the Slovenian. On the Poggio, Pogacar tried to drop his final two rivals, but despite multiple accelerations, Van der Poel and Ganna held firm. In the sprint, Pogacar had to settle for third place.

Although he didn’t take the win, Pogacar told Eurosport after the race that he doesn’t believe he or his team could’ve done much differently. "We will analyze and we will see what we did wrong, but right now I can say that we rode really good. From my point of view, a very good race. We tried everything, made the race really explosive. But it was not enough. We had two better riders today. So yeah, there's another chance next year," joked the third-place finisher.

Read more below the video.

Pogacar: "The laws of physics are at play here"

Whether Pogacar will succeed next year remains to be seen. The course of Milan-Sanremo is simply not that suited to his strengths, especially considering the mild gradients of the final climbs. "If you look at it on paper, I would prefer the Poggio to be five kilometers long and ten percent average," Pogacar said. "But it is what it is. It's a really hard race for me to make the difference. The laws of physics are at play here, and I can't do magic."

Next up for Pogacar are the Flemish classics — but does that include Paris-Roubaix? "I cannot say," said the Slovenian, keeping it mysterious. The interviewer noticed some grimacing from Pogacar in the finale — a rare sight. "I don’t know how my face was looking because I don't have a mirror on the bike, but for sure there were some pained faces today," Pogacar replied dryly.

Even though the world champion was understandably disappointed, he’s optimistic heading into his next goals. "The legs were really good, maybe I'm missing that big power. I could try many times, but I was missing a few watts to go the maximum. But the legs were good."

Read more below the photo.

Pogacar and Ganna congratulate each other on an excellent race

Gianetti: "Van der Poel absolutely deserved this win"

UAE Team Emirates-XRG manager Mauro Gianetti, like the fans, saw a spectacular race. But he admitted the team’s plan couldn’t be executed perfectly. "The attack on the Cipressa was the plan. That’s why we wanted to go full gas up that climb," Gianetti told Eurosport. One link in the chain, however, was missing. "Unfortunately, Del Toro (Isaac, ed.) was probably a bit stuck at the back of the peloton, so he couldn’t take his turn pulling. Tadej may have had to attack a little too early as a result. But it was a great day, with the three best riders out front. We only missed Pedersen (Mads, ed.)."

Gianetti saw a fantastic performance from his riders, but Pogacar couldn’t shake Van der Poel and Ganna in the finale despite his many attacks. In the sprint, Pogacar had no chance against the two. Still, Gianetti is satisfied with Pogacar’s third place. "It’s okay. We knew Van der Poel was in incredible form, just like Pipo (Filippo Ganna, ed.). This is a tough race for us. But we gave it everything. Tadej, as always, raced with a big heart. He put on a great show."

Like his team leader, the team boss has no regrets. "The team did everything right, and so did Tadej. If there are riders better than us, we have to acknowledge that. Today Pipo fought like a king. And above all, Van der Poel rode a fantastic race," Gianetti praised the rival. "He controlled the race in every situation. He absolutely deserved this win."

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