Just In: When asked about Tadej Pogacar, Sean Kelly said, “I see him winning Roubaix before Milano-Sanremo.”

In 2025, Tadej Pogacar has big plans. Milano-Sanremo will be his main goal in the spring. The UAE Team Emirates rider has already won three major races, but he has been chasing the Italian race for the past two seasons and has come close to winning but hasn’t been able to do so. Former pro cyclist, journalist, and pundit Sean Kelly thinks that the World Champion will win Paris-Roubaix more likely than anyone else.

This is an interesting point of view that goes against what most people say, which is that Roubaix is a completely different race with more chances and heavier riders with more experience usually winning than the Slovenian. There has been a race where Pogacar almost won Sanremo, but he will always be closely watched, and as a climber, it’s hard to make the difference.

You can do it, but it will be hard. Eliminating everyone on the Cipressa or Poggio will be hard. If he wants to win all five Monuments, Roubaix is also tough, but I think he will win Roubaix before Milano-Sanremo, Kelly told Daniel Benson. “Look at how many riders are hitting the Poggio. Changing things on the Poggio will be very hard for him. In what other place can he do it? In my opinion, this is his hardest run yet.

At this point, Pogacar has decided not to race in Paris-Roubaix this spring. Instead, he will focus on getting ready for Sanremo. Roubaix comes with a lot of risks for a rider who usually has goals in the Ardennes and later in the summer at the Grand Tours. If they get hurt, they could miss out on big goals. He has shown a lot of skill in cobblestones, classics, and even flat races, but we don’t know when he will make his start in “The Hell of the North.”

He will definitely go to Sanremo unless he isn’t fit enough in the spring, but Kelly says, “The terrain there isn’t right for that.” I don’t think he can do it unless it’s a really bad day with rain and cold weather and the Poggio is empty when he gets there. His magic has to be shown again, or Pogacar tried to attack the Poggio in 2023 and 2024, but Mathieu van der Poel either matched them or dropped them.

This is a classic race where everything has to work out just right. UAE will probably put more focus on this race with their lineup, coming up with a specific plan to give him the best chance of winning. “Winning Paris-Roubaix is a step above winning the Tour of Flanders.” “But I think he’s up to the task,” he said in the end.