One of the most beautiful Milan-Sanremo in modern history has been archived with Mathieu van der Poel's victory, Filippo Ganna's second place, and Tadej Pogacar's third, but the Classics season has just begun and there are still 4 Monument Classics to be raced.

Van der Poel has won 7 Monument Classics: two Milan-Sanremo, three Tours of Flanders, and two Paris-Roubaix. Tadej Pogacar has also won 7 Monument Classics and his palmares include one Tour of Flanders, two Liège-Bastogne-Liège, and 4 Tours of Lombardy. The two champions are on par, and in the coming weeks we'll see who pulls ahead.

The king of the Classicissima explained yesterday: "Regarding Sanremo, I understood that to win it I must do the Tirreno-Adriatico, and this has given me the opportunity to win it twice. Meanwhile, I've also done reconnaissance for the Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix, where I'll meet the same rivals I encountered in Sanremo".

He then adds: "Pogacar is one of the strongest riders of all time, it's a generational fact, and I think one day he will succeed in winning all 5 Monument Classics. It's difficult, but not impossible, and when you're a rider with his characteristics, then nothing is impossible".

Could the same apply to Van der Poel? The Dutchman has only raced the Tour of Lombardy once: it was 2020, the Covid year, and he finished tenth, while he has participated in Liège-Bastogne-Liège twice, in 2020 and 2024, finishing sixth and third.

"For now, I'm not focusing on this kind of record. It's not just about winning the 5 Monument Classics, but about which riders you'll encounter during the race. At the moment, I think it's quite impossible, because it would mean winning against riders like Pogacar and Evenepoel in races where they are almost unbeatable".

The Dutch champion believes that Pogacar will be the first, among current riders, to conquer the 5 prestigious races. "Certainly, we haven't yet seen Pogacar at Paris-Roubaix, but we've seen him at the Tour de France where he's very good on the pavé. So I'm convinced he can win it very soon, but first he'll have to decide to race it. Milan-Sanremo is a race suited to him, so I think he'll have more opportunities to win it".

We still don't know if and when Van der Poel will return to face Liège-Bastogne-Liège and the Tour of Lombardy, and on this matter, the Dutchman doesn't want any pressure.
"Winning Liège and Lombardy is not impossible. You need to prepare for them and then face them. Of course, it would be nice to win the five Monument Classics, but I think I've already won a lot and that I can postpone this goal further".