Eddy Merckx expressed his belief that Tadej Pogačar “can do better than me” as the Slovenian cycling sensation dominates the peloton.
Pogačar, riding for UAE Team Emirates, has already been dubbed the new Merckx, joining other consistently successful riders like Wout van Aert (Jumbo-Visma) and Remco Evenepoel (Deceuninck – Quick-Step). However, Merckx had his own perspective.
The Belgian cycling legend highlighted that Pogačar, at just 23 years old, has already secured two Tour de France victories and two Monuments. In contrast, Merckx didn’t win his first Tour until he was 24.
In an interview with Tuttobici, Merckx stated, “I’ve heard ‘this is the new Merckx’ many times, but with Tadej, I think we’re truly there this time. He’s 23 and has already won the Tour de France twice—truly incredible.”
Merckx continued, “Tadej is still at the beginning of his career. I believe he can outperform me in certain races. Winning the Tour twice and claiming 30 victories at his age is remarkable.”
Despite Pogačar’s achievements, he has a way to go before matching Merckx’s unparalleled records: five Tour de France wins, five Giro d’Italia titles, three World Championships, five Liège-Bastogne-Liège victories, three Paris-Roubaix wins, seven Milan-San Remos, and two Il Lombardias—a truly extraordinary career.
So far, Pogačar has secured consecutive Tour wins, triumphed in Liège-Bastogne-Liège and Il Lombardia, and claimed victories in races like Tirreno-Adriatico, UAE Tour, Tour of California, and Volta ao Algarve. His impressive list of 30 wins also includes three Vuelta a España stage wins and six Tour de France stage wins.
As Pogačar reflects on a long season, which began in late February and concluded on October 9 at Il Lombardia, he remains eager to chase more victories, setting his sights on the world title and the Giro in the future. 🚴♂️🏆
