Mathieu van der Poel has conceded that Tadej Pogačar could beat him and so win this year's Paris-Roubaix as their 2025 Classics rivalry is confirmed for two more weekends in April.
On Wednesday, Pogačar's UAE Team Emirates-XRG squad announced that he will ride Paris-Roubaix after weeks of growing speculation, reports, conjecture and concerns about the dangers of racing on the French cobbles.
The Slovenian, who last Saturday rounded out the Milan-San Remo podium behind Van der Poel and Filippo Ganna, will now miss this week's E3 Saxo Classic and Gent-Wevelgem.
However, he will clash with Van der Poel at the Tour of Flanders on April 6 and then at Paris-Roubaix on April 13. Ganna will also race Roubaix, while Wout van Aert is set to ride both races following a recent spell of altitude training.
Pogačar beat van der Poel to win the 2023 edition of the Tour Flanders, but the Dutchman did the Flanders-Roubaix double last year in Pogačar's absence. He admitted that Pogačar could win this year's Paris-Roubaix during a recent exclusive interview with Cyclingnews, L'Equipe and La Gazzetta dello Sport.
"He's showed in the Tour de France Roubaix stage how good he is on the cobbles. So for sure, he's capable of winning it," Van der Poel admitted.
"It won't be easy, but it's never easy. I think he has a chance."
Pogačar finished seventh on stage 5 of the 2022 Tour de France, which included 11 sectors of Paris-Roubaix cobbles and finished in the shadow of the Arenberg Forest. His aggression blew the race apart, leading his rivals Jonas Vingegaard and Primož Roglič to lose vital time, though the Dane went on to win that year's Tour de France.
Van der Poel prefers to focus on his own race than on his rivals but has admitted that Pogačar can hurt him.
He was referring to Pogačar's attack on the final climb of the Oude Kwaremont after their epic battle on the roads and climbs of Flanders in 2023. Pogačar dropped van der Poel on the famous climb before time trialling to a solo victory
"If he's stronger, like he was at the Tour of Flanders two years ago, then it's something you have to deal with," Van der Poel said.
"It's not something I can change because I know I did everything I could to be in the best possible shape at that race. If a rider is stronger, that's how it is."
After beating Pogačar to win his seventh Monument on the Via Roma last weekend, Van der Poel said that it's "always special" to beat the world champion.
"Tadej is everybody's rival, so if you can beat him, you're close to victory," he suggested.
"He's not only one of the best Classics riders but also one of the best Grand Tour riders. He's a generational talent, for sure. I'm happy to race against him and if you beat him, it's special.
