Tadej Pogáčar has hinted at doing the toughest one-day race in the world, Paris – Roubaix, but he’s always cagey about it.
“Not yet, but then again, you never know,” he said, saying that while he dreams of adding the iconic race to his palmarès, he said in 2024. But back then he said he isn’t ready to commit to the 2025 edition.
Tadej Pogačar training on Arenberg 😍
🎥: Tim Wellens pic.twitter.com/uNzHoyiF6y
— Lukáš Ronald Lukács (@lucasaganronald) February 10, 2025
Former pro Tom Boonen, who presented Pogi with the Velo D’Or for best male cyclist of the year, and who is himself a four-time winner of the Queen of the Classics, the Slovenian can pull it off.
“I’m 100 per cent sure he can win Paris-Roubaix. Because he’s very skilled on the bike and can do anything on it. And Paris-Roubaix isn’t a difficult race,” he said. “You just have to ride fast and take the wind into account. But you also need to try to avoid the cobbles as much as possible, and everything will be fine.”
A fun little training ride on some of the toughest roads in Europe
On Sunday, he posted an Instagram video of him riding the cobbles like an absolute champ–and none other than the infamous Arenberg Forest section. His cameraman, by the way, Tim Wellens, deserves an Oscar for his cinematography, filming Pogi as he as well flies across the pave.
Marco Marcato and Fabio Baldato of UAE said they organized the recon. But they too, didn’t have much to add. “I can’t talk too much about the reconnaissance itself, but I can say that Paris-Roubaix is still not on Tadej’s programme” Marcato said to Belgian media.
Turns out, he didn’t just ride the one section, he rode them all. According to UAE, they wanted to check out the Roubaix Velodrome but it was closed.
More videos from Pogačar Roubaix recon, as he rode not only Arenberg, but all the Paris Roubaix sectors. 😍 pic.twitter.com/up2shzPYn7
— Lukáš Ronald Lukács (@lucasaganronald) February 11, 2025
A recon for April?
Although many cycling enthusiasts flock to the legendary parcours, riding the cobbles is not exactly fun. Mathieu van der Poel, a multiple winner of the race, said, “I don’t like to ride on cobbles. I like to race on cobbles, but I never train on them. And I really don’t know anyone who actually says, that today for training I am going to do some Roubaix cobble sections. Nobody much enjoys it.”
So truly, the only reason Pogáčar would train on them…
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