Leading sprinter Jasper Philipsen has added to his joking Internet request to Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) not to ride Paris-Roubaix in 2025, arguing that despite team denials, the Slovenian star may yet take part in the Hell of the North this April.
"I know Tadej and he tries to tick off all the big races. It's still possible this year," Philipsen told Belgian sports agency Sporza during the Alpecin-Deceuninck team media day
Pogačar recently posted a video of himself doing a recon of Roubaix's Arenberg Forest sector, which sparked furore in social media about the chances of his taking part in the Hell of the North for the first time as a pro.
While UAE management have subsequently been at pains to play down the possibility of Pogačar switching plans and making a surprise addition of Paris-Roubaix to his 2025 calendar, Philipsen, for one, believes the opposite is still not ruled out.
"You don't just do that," Philipsen told Sporza about the Arenberg recon by Pogačar and teammate Tim Wellens. "That's probably with a specific goal in mind."
"I know Tadej and he tries to tick off all the big races. It's still possible this year. It's less for the competition, but it would be an added value for the race."
As for Philipsen himself, he has said that if he had the choice, he'd prefer to add a second Tour de France points classification to his palmarès, rather than claiming the first yellow jersey of the race in Lille next July 5.
The Alpecin-Deceuninck racer said that he would be returning to Milan-San Remo to try for a second straight victory in the first Monument of 2025, and he would also be back at Paris-Roubaix, where he has taken second both in 2023 and 2024.
The Tour of Flanders, however, is not on the schedule, and Tirreno-Adriatico, where he has three stage wins to date, is also missing from his program, with Philipsen doing an altitude training camp instead.
Despite claiming his first Monument in 2024 as well as three stages of the Tour de France, Philipsen only gave himself a seven out of 10 for 2024, Sporza reported, with the 26-year-old wanting "to go for eight or nine out of 10 in 2025."
About to take part in the UAE Tour, his first race of the season, Philipsen said that he had had a similar off-winter to previous years, but that while he had made progress with training, it was not clear what effect it would have.
"It is always very difficult to take very big steps. You read in the press that everyone does that in the winter, but it is not always possible. I have certainly taken a step myself, but I do not yet know in which direction," he said.
Philipsen begins his road campaign on Monday in the UAE Tour, where he took two stages in his last participation back in 2022, followed by Omloop Het Nieuwsblad and Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne.
"It's just like last year, but this time with some racing in the legs. That way I hope to perform better."
As for whether he would give his friend Pogačar advice about Roubaix, Philipsen downplayed the idea.
"Should I give him any tips? No, I'm not the right man for that. Don't ask me anything about material or tyre pressure. I trust [Alpecin manager] Christoph Roodhooft completely. He's maniacally busy with it."
