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Tadej Pogačar has done most things in pro cycling, but he’s still not raced the Giro d’Italia.
Should he change that in 2024?
In an interview this week, Pogačar let it be known that he’s more interested in chasing unfinished business — namely the world title and the Giro d’Italia and Vuelta a España — than obsessing on winning a third yellow jersey at the Tour de France.
That pure-racing sentiment is what makes him so popular with fans, but it could run headlong into the ambitions and desires of team management and backers, who put the yellow jersey above everything else on the calendar.
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Pogačar’s raced only five grand tours, and his track record is beyond impressive. He was third in his grand tour debut at the Vuelta, won two straight yellow jerseys, and has since finished second to Jonas Vingegaard in the past two editions of the Tour.
Is it time to cut Pogačar loose, and let him chase his Giro dreams? Or should he buckle down and beat back Vingegaard to reclaim his Tour crown?
Velo editors Jim Cotton and Andrew Hood argue out the options:
Andrew Hood: Not yet, Tadej, win another Tour de France first
Pogačar has a score to settle with Vingegaard and the Tour de France. (Photo: Gruber Images / Velo)
As much as I dig Tadej and his I-want-to-win-everything ethos, it’s time for him to rope in another yellow jersey.
I absolutely love that he races to win every race he starts. That kind of world-beating attitude is an absolutely breath of fresh air from the singular obsession with the Tour de France that dominated the peloton for 30 years.
Like it or not, the Tour remains the measuring stick of racing success.
And for arguably the most talented rider so far in this century, winning just two yellow jerseys doesn’t seem an accurate reflection of his tremendous skillset.
For 2024, the peloton will see an unprecedented number of Tour-caliber riders all capable of racing for yellow. Vingegaard, Primož Roglič, Remco Evenepoel, and perhaps a few others could all win the Tour this year.
The time is right for Pogačar to stand tall and beat them all.
That doesn’t mean he cannot race Tour of Flanders, or stop his strategy of racing to win every race.
What he needs to do is buckle down tactically during the Tour, and put that win-everything attitude on hold for three weeks.
Jumbo-Visma and Vingegaard cracked the “Pogačar Code” in part by playing the long game each July. Pogačar races to win every stage at the Tour, and while he racks up stage wins, stints in the yellow jersey, and time bonuses, he wasting energy that costs him in week three.
Someone needs to sit Pogačar down and telegraph the message that winning the Tour is more important than lighting up every stage.
One more yellow jersey would take off all the pressure from sponsors and team management. After that, he’d have an open road to win the Giro and Vuelta as much as he’d like.
Jim Cotton: Pogi, don’t pause. Race the Giro now … and then the Vuelta and road worlds
Pogačar will be remembered for his multi-faceted palmarès – the Giro would be a new entry into his record. (Photo: Gruber Images / Velo)
Tadej, don’t wait.
Race the “Giro lite” that’s been built for 2024, skip the Tour, and come back strong to slam the Vuelta a España and road worlds.
After all, what would look more impressive on a palmarès going into 2025? Three Tour de France titles, OR victories at the Giro d’Italia, two Tours, and maybe even road worlds and Vuelta a España?
Pogačar is a racer that thrives off variety. Keeping it fresh is the key to his success.
He wants to race the Giro and has some serious eyes on the rainbow jersey of world champion. UAE Emirates should let him tick those boxes now and then return to rampage through the Tour in 2025.
The 2024 Giro d’Italia has been designed with Pogačar in mind.
The Slovenian star could start 2024 with the spring classics and Giro before he resets for the Vuelta and worlds.
With so many GC galácticos targeting the Tour, Pogačar would get a relatively clear run through the Giro and possibly also at the Vuelta. Adding pink and red winner’s jerseys to his two maillots jaune would score huge bragging rights and keep content the happy-go-lucky meme lord that won almost everything he started in 2023.
Of course, there is one very big race Pogačar didn’t win this year – the Tour. It’s the race that defines most riders’ seasons, if not their careers.
But not for a multi-faceted star like Pogačar. He stepped up a level by adding the Tour of Flanders and Amstel Gold Race to his record this year, and that’s the breadth that will cause bike fans to draw breath for decades to come. Adding even more depth with the pink jersey would take Pogačar toward another stratosphere.
Sure, UAE Emirates wants wins at the biggest race on the calendar, the Tour de France. And Pogčar is its best hope at doing that against a seemingly unstoppable Jumbo-Visma juggernaut.
But it also has a deep bench to keep happy and (try to) fill Pogačar’s irrepressible boots. Any one of Adam Yates, Juan Ayuso, or João Almeida could crack the Tour’s podium should things swing their way.
2024 is currently touted as the year we get to see Pogačar race Vingegaard, Primož Roglič, and Remco Evenepoel at the Tour de France. But those three aren’t going away, and the world can wait.
So Tadej, get the Giro done while the odds are good. You’ve got a decade left in your legs to claim that pesky Tour de France hat trick.