Thomas loves the 'Vingegaard mystery' and shares a Pogacar story: 'He came up to me at 420 watts talking about a watch or something'

Pogacar lined up as the undisputed favorite for La Doyenne and absolutely delivered on that expectation. “There was no way he was going to get beaten,” Thomas said. “I heard him afterwards saying that people claiming he’d gotten weaker after the Amstel Gold Race don’t know cycling. I think they do know cycling, just not Pogacar. The way he was riding… unreal.”

To illustrate just how dominant he was, Thomas shared a moment from during the race. “Liège kicks off uphill, right? The fight for the early break was already on, and we were riding at over 400 watts. Then I hear, ‘Hey G Thomas,’ and I look back, it’s Pogacar. He pulls up next to me and just starts chatting, about a new Richard Mille watch or something he was going to check out the next day. I was thinking, we’re doing 420 watts and you want to have a conversation? I felt alright, but I was just trying to breathe. He really is on another level.”

After the race, some criticized this year’s edition of Liège-Bastogne-Liège for being dull. “If you watched it on TV, it probably wasn’t all that exciting,” Thomas admitted. “It couldn’t really be. What happened? A break went up the road, and two of our guys (Bob Jungels and Tobias Foss) went after it. Then they all got caught, Pogacar attacked from the saddle, and that was it.”

INEOS Grenadiers did ride aggressively, but were also chasing shadows. “We were hoping others would join. Bob and I were riding next to each other, and he asked me, ‘What do we do, go?’ Honestly, I wasn’t that eager, but if some strong guys had joined, maybe UAE would’ve had to work a bit harder. But nobody came. Then I suddenly saw Foss flying through the gravel.”

“I don’t want to throw a teammate under the bus, but I did say over the radio that it probably wasn’t the most efficient way to burn our matches. It just didn’t work,” Thomas said. Axel Laurance eventually finished eighth for the team. “We also shouldn’t forget that a podium would’ve been a big result for us too, and maybe we could’ve saved some firepower for La Redoute.”

Thomas and Rowe couldn't resist talking about Matthew Brennan, either. Their compatriot is one of the most incredible cycling talents nowadays: the 19-year-old British rider won another stage in the Tour de Romandie on Wednesday. "He's having a fantastic year," says Rowe. "He came second in the Tour Down Under; he won the GP Denain, two stages in Catalonia. In Roubaix, he was among the very best until the final part. He is a powerful rider."

Thomas agrees with his teammate and adds a hilarious fact. "I spoke to him briefly in the Tour Down Under. I turned professional when he was one year old. Then I spoke to him in Catalonia. He's a good kid, a nice guy. He's smart and has a bright future ahead of him," says the Welshman. The two British riders cannot avoid comparisons with Wout van Aert. "He climbs so well, which is essential for surviving the hills in Catalonia, but also in the classics, to be so good in Denain and Roubaix..."

Thomas wrapped up his podcast with another footnote in the context of Pogacar’s dominance. “I love the mystery around Jonas Vingegaard, who’s targeting the Dauphiné and the Tour. They’ve got a plan and they’re keeping it behind closed doors. Let people speculate, we’ll be ready when it counts. Cycling needs that too — a strong Vingegaard. Why should he tell anyone what he’s going to do? Primoz Roglic is the same, they just keep it to themselves. That’s cool.”