Bakelants: ‘I wouldn’t draw too many conclusions from Milan-Sanremo for the upcoming cobbled Classics’

The way Pogacar won was a display of unprecedented class. After his crash, he quickly made his way back up the pack and then left everyone except Tom Pidcock in his wake. The Brit was then beaten in the sprint on the iconic Via Roma, allowing the world champion to finally add La Primavera to his list of victories.

“I find it hard to say that it was his strongest performance ever, but it was certainly his strongest victory in terms of resilience,” Bakelants concludes in his analysis for HLN. “He was under pressure and didn’t really believe in it anymore himself, but thanks in part to his team, he got back into the race.”

And that means Pogi’s impressive streak continues. “He has now won Liège, the Tour, the World Championships, Lombardy, and Sanremo in succession. Let that sink in for a moment. Only Eddy Merckx comes close to that,” the Belgian former rider says, highlighting the Slovenian’s greatness.

So Van der Poel had to drop back on the Poggio on Saturday, which wasn’t exactly what anyone expected. “That did surprise me, because I didn’t expect that to happen there anymore. I did feel that on the Cipressa he didn’t give the same impression as last year. He was clearly pushed to his limit by Pogacar,” observes Bakelants. The Dutchman also went down in the crash involving Pogacar.

‘It didn’t go as smoothly as last year,’ says the Belgian, though he does see a logical explanation. ‘Van der Poel is, of course, ten kilograms heavier than Pogacar, so every second they ride faster means they’re dipping a little deeper into their reserves. I don’t think he was any worse than last year, but that it just went even faster.’

That is the basis for Bakelants to argue why, in his opinion, “no major conclusions” should be drawn regarding “the upcoming cobbled races.” Thijs Zonneveld did just that, in a sense. 'Pogacar has simply gotten even better. If this was the best Van der Poel, then he’ll simply be slaughtered in the Tour of Flanders in two weeks. That’s an even tougher course,’ were the Dutchman's words.

Bakelants, however, wants nothing to do with that. ‘If Van der Poel were to worry at all, he’d be better off just not starting,’ the Belgian adds his two cents. Because: ‘As far as I’m concerned, Van der Poel remains the favorite over Pogacar in the Tour of Flanders, and Pogacar is his main challenger in that race. That hasn’t changed for me since Sanremo. It’s clear that Pogacar is incredibly good, but that crash is still a blemish. Fortunately, there are still two weeks until the Tour of Flanders, but that’s not going to make you any better, you know.’