The debate about the greatest cyclist of all time will never end, of course, but Eddy Merckx appeared to give his vote to Tadej Pogačar in the aftermath of the Slovenian’s victory in the World Championships on Sunday.
Since turning professional in 2019, Pogačar has come to be routinely described as the greatest rider since Merckx. Speaking to L’Équipe on Sunday evening, however, Merckx was of the opinion that the Slovenian had now surpassed him.
“It’s obvious that he is now above me,” Merckx said of Pogačar when contacted by the French newspaper. “Deep down, I already thought as much when I saw what he did on the last Tour de France, but tonight there’s no more doubt about it.”
Merckx was speaking after Pogačar became the third male rider in history to win the Giro d’Italia, Tour de France and World Championships in the same season. The feat was first achieved by Merckx in 1974 and emulated by Stephen Roche in 1987. Annemiek van Vleuten became the first woman to complete the Triple Crown in 2022.
Pogačar’s first rainbow jersey came in astonishing circumstances after he attacked with over 100km remaining on the demanding Zurich course. After bridging up to the break, Pogačar eventually rode the entire race off his wheel, spending the final 51km alone. Ben O’Connor (Australia) took second at 34 seconds, while Mathieu van der Poel (Netherlands) won the sprint for bronze.
Merckx’s own career was punctuated by astonishing solo raids, including his triumphs at the Tour of Flanders in 1969 and 1975 and his stage victory at Mourenx on the 1969 Tour. Despite that back catalogue, Merckx admitted that he had never dared to attack from so far out at the Worlds.
“Obviously, you can never compare eras, but this is an incredible rider,” Merckx said. “I didn’t attack with 100 kilometres to go in a World Championship, but what he has done is unimaginable. It’s something we’ll remember for a very long time. He took a lot of risks against [Mathieu] van der Poel and [Remco] Evenepoel, but that didn’t scare him. That’s when you realise that Pogačar is an immense champion. He’s out of the ordinary.”
Pogačar won his first Giro and third Tour with remarkable ease this summer, but he still has some way to match the palmarès of Merckx, who won each race five times. Merckx also won the Vuelta a España in 1973, while Pogačar has yet to complete a full set of Grand Tour victories.
The modern concept of what constitutes a ‘Monument’ Classic did not exist in Merckx’s time – and it may yet change in the future – but the Belgian won all five of the current Monuments across his career, racking up a record 19 victories.
Pogačar’s current tally of Monuments stands at six after his wins at Liège-Bastogne-Liège (2021 and 2024), Il Lombardia (2021, 2022 and 2023) and the Tour of Flanders (2023). Milan-San Remo has thus far eluded him and he has yet to compete at Paris-Roubaix, but he has a chance to notch up another Monument at Il Lombardia on October 12.
Like Merckx, Pogačar has come to define his generation in cycling, with Van der Poel – himself winner of six Monuments and a world title – describing the 2020s as ‘the Pogačar era.’ Pogačar underscored that status in 2024, when he completed a treble so rare that it wasn’t even feted as such when Merckx achieved it half a century ago.
“I don’t remember anyone talking to me about it at the time,” Merckx told L’Équipe. “Maybe it was because it was the first time it had happened, and we didn’t have any reference points or comparisons. We weren’t really attached to these historical references. But with Pogačar we're obliged to do so today.”
