Cycling legend Eddy Merckx expects that he and the other five-time Tour de France winners will be surpassed by superstar Tadej Pogacar. “I don’t think he’ll be content just to draw level with me and the other champions. He’ll soon break our record for Tour victories,” the 81-year-old Belgian told *Gazzetta dello Sport*. Alongside Merckx, the two Frenchmen Jacques Anquetil and Bernard Hinault, as well as the Spaniard Miguel Indurain, also have five overall victories to their names.
Merckx is impressed by the performances of the Slovenian world champion Pogacar, who was also on the verge of his fifth Tour victory on Sunday. “Of course, it was clear right from the start of his professional career that he had exceptional talent. Although, to be honest, I wouldn’t have expected him to perform so impressively on the climbs. It seems as though he’s breaking mountain records on every stage,” added the former exceptional cyclist.
All the Grand Tours in a single year?
Merckx did not want to draw comparisons with his own era. “Every era has its champions,” said the Belgian, who racked up 525 victories during his career. Merckx also believes Pogacar is capable of winning the three Grand Tours – the Tour, the Giro and the Vuelta – in a single year.
“If anyone can do it, it’s him. In my opinion, he can do it if the conditions are right,” said Merckx. To do so, Pogacar needs a strong team with a deep squad. “A team that is capable of controlling races effectively so as not to waste energy on individual stages.”
Merckx regards his compatriot and Tour runner-up Remco Evenepoel as the “best of the mortals”. Evenepoel is the world’s best time-trialist, “but I’m not sure whether he’ll ever be able to keep up with Pogacar at his very best on the climbs,” said Merckx.
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