“That actually makes it a little scary”; Tadej Pogacar on the key moment in Milan–Sanremo

Van der Poel has already won La Primavera twice, while Pogacar is still chasing his first victory in Sanremo. The Slovenian reiterated in Siena that, as far as he’s concerned, Milan-Sanremo is the hardest race to win.

“It’s completely different from Strade Bianche, the Omloop, Flanders, or any other spring race,” said the UAE Emirates-XRG team leader.

“Until we reach the coast, it’s a very easy race. But then it immediately gets extremely tense, from the moment we hit the coast,” said Pogacar. “It’s constantly left, right, through villages at high speed.”

In the final, positioning is crucial, he knows. “The run-in to Cipressa in particular is very dangerous, partly because all the strong riders—classic types, sprinters, and riders like me—want to be at the front. That actually makes it a bit scary,” he admits honestly.

On that climb this year, Pogacar is missing Tim Wellens and Jhonatan Narvaez, who were sidelined by injury—the riders who gave him a boost in previous seasons. Instead, Florian Vermeersch, who scouted the final stretch again on Sunday, and Isaac del Toro are on hand.

“I’ve been in Van der Poel’s slipstream a lot this week; maybe that will help in Milan-Sanremo,” the Mexican said after winning Tirreno-Adriatico. “I’m riding for Tadej and not for my own result. Narvaez and Wellens won’t be there, so I want to do my best as a teammate.”

Del Toro will likely take on that role on the Cipressa, where Pogacar explained it further. “Once you get to the Cipressa, 100 percent isn’t enough. You have to give it 110 percent to make a difference.”

“And that also applies to the Poggio, where you need even more than 110 percent. We’re climbing those ascents at 40 kilometers per hour, so it’s advantageous to be in the wheel,” the Slovenian knows from experience in recent years, when he couldn’t shake off Van der Poel.

“And then you have to descend to Sanremo, which is a technical descent. All in all, it’s a very unusual race, but that’s exactly what makes it interesting. And beautiful.”