Insane data from Pogacar shows that even the best Evenepoel wouldn’t have stood much of a chance

With 35 kilometers to go, Pogacar was already alone. He launched his attack on La Redoute, but not where his rivals expected it. The UAE Team Emirates–XRG leader surged away even before the steepest gradients began. With an acceleration so early on the climb, it’s no wonder he set the fastest time ever recorded on the famous hill. In just 3 minutes and 58 seconds, he reached the top, three seconds faster than the previous KOM held by Jarno Widar. Louis Barré was the second-best rider up La Redoute during the race, perhaps a surprising name, but not entirely unexpected given his recent form.

For comparison: Remco Evenepoel’s best time on La Redoute, the key climb of La Doyenne, is 4 minutes and 12 seconds, 14 seconds slower than Pogacar. But just as impressively, the eventual winner was also the fastest on the Cornemont, the stretch that follows La Redoute. Evenepoel, for example, tried to close the gap there in previous editions but wasn’t successful this time. Pogacar was simply too strong and extended his lead even further, including on the tricky false-flat sections after La Redoute. When you combine the times for La Redoute and Cornemont, Pogacar was a stunning 24(!) seconds faster than the second-best time, set by Evenepoel during his 2023 victory.

On the Côte de Roche-aux-Faucons, Pogacar, perhaps surprisingly, wasn’t the fastest ever: with a time of 3 minutes and 51 seconds, he was no less than 20 seconds slower than David Gaudu and Michael Woods in 2021. But of course, the Slovenian had managed his effort differently. If you look at the segment from the Côte de Forges through the outskirts of the Roche-aux-Faucons, a stretch of nearly 15 kilometers, Pogacar was once again the fastest. No big surges in his final efforts, just a blisteringly high pace maintained over a long period. It shows how much Pogacar has matured, pacing himself better and rarely overextending.

Another stunning statistic: Jonas Creteur compiled the average speeds of the 14 most important spring classics. In the previous decade, the average speed was 41.578 km/h. In 2025, that number has risen significantly: this year's one-day races have been raced at an average speed of 44.329 km/h. Interestingly, last year was even slightly faster, but it clearly shows how much stronger today's riders are compared to the previous generation.