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Is Tadej Pogačar the new Eddy Merckx?

The Slovenian can't stop winning

March 15, 2022
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It’s March and already UAE’s Tadej Pogačar has dominated every race he’s been in. From his downhill attack to win Strade Bianche, to his astonishing power at Tirreno–Adriatico, the Slovenian seems untouchable. While some were reluctant to make comparisons between Pogačar and Merckx following his first Tour victory in 2020, some predicted that he would continue do annihilate his competition.

Tadej Pogačar romps to solo Strade Bianche victory

French former pro and team manager Cyrille Guimard, who rode against the legendary Belgian, said that Pogačar was above the level of both Merckx and five-time TdF winner Bernard Hinault. Guimard of course also directed cycling legends Laurent Fignon and Greg LeMond, also multiple Tour winners.

After the 2021 Tour, even Merckx himself said that he considered the Slovenian as “the new Cannibal. “If nothing happens to him, he can certainly win the Tour de France more than five times,” he said. Following the 2021 Il Lombardia, where Pog took the win, the Belgian legend said that he has heard plenty of cyclists called “the new Merckx” in his life, but none of them ever proved to be quite the same.

This YouTuber made some controversial observations about Wout van Aert and Tadej Pogačar

On Monday, Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl’s Patrick Lefevere weighed in on the debate with Het Laatste Nieuws. “The fact is: anyone who said he wasn’t ‘the new Merckx’ was grossly mistaken,” he said. “Not him, but Tadej Pogačar is ‘the new Merckx’. That’s clear now, I think.”

Despite Pog’s impressive rides, he still has quite a bit of races to win to be in the same league. It’s difficult of course to compare the cycling era of then, to now. Some have said it’s inaccurate to even try and make the comparison, given that the talent pool is larger now, and training and science has made the difference between a champion and pack fill to be much closer.

Still, as Jonas Creteur tweeted below, the Slovenian has his work cut out for him, if he’s to be the “new Merckx.”