Van Aert Dismisses Pogacar's Two-Day Roubaix Recon: "Quite Normal That They Prepare Well"
The mind games before Sunday's Paris-Roubaix have begun in earnest. Wout van Aert has played down the significance of Tadej Pogacar's highly publicised two-day reconnaissance of the Paris-Roubaix cobblestones, telling reporters that the Slovenian's preparations are nothing out of the ordinary. "It is quite normal that they prepare well," said the Visma-Lease a Bike star. "We do the same."
Pogacar spent two days earlier this week riding the key cobbled sectors of northern France alongside Florian Vermeersch, his cobbles lieutenant at UAE Team Emirates-XRG. The world champion posted on social media that the experience had been "two eventful days, the kind that deserve a place in the memory bank," accompanied by images of himself navigating the rain-soaked pavé at Carrefour de l'Arbre, Camphin-en-Pévèle, and Mons-en-Pévèle alongside teammates Nils Politt and Tim Wellens.
The reconnaissance was extensive by any measure. Two full days on the cobblestones — in wet conditions that gave Pogacar and his team a useful taste of the worst-case scenario — represents a level of commitment that underscores just how seriously the 27-year-old is targeting the Hell of the North. The Slovenian finished second on his Paris-Roubaix debut last year, beaten only by Mathieu van der Poel, and has spoken openly about Roubaix being the missing piece in his Monument collection.
Van Aert, though, was having none of the narrative that Pogacar's preparation gives him an edge. The Belgian has his own demons to exorcise at Paris-Roubaix — a race where his results have never matched his talent — and appeared keen to shift the focus back onto the road. "But it is clear that Pogacar has made it a real target," he conceded, acknowledging the Slovenian's intent without inflating it.
The exchange captures the psychological undercurrents coursing through the peloton four days before the most anticipated Paris-Roubaix in a generation. Pogacar arrives chasing a Monument Grand Slam — having already won Milan-San Remo and the Tour of Flanders this spring. Van der Poel is targeting a historic four-peat. Van Aert, meanwhile, arrives in arguably his best spring form in years after finishing fourth at Flanders, with his team publicly backing him as the rider for whom Roubaix suits best.
Visma-Lease a Bike's own Roubaix preparations have been no less meticulous, even if they have attracted less attention. The Dutch squad deployed their revolutionary GRAVAA tyre pressure system during reconnaissance, the same technology that helped Pauline Ferrand-Prevot win Paris-Roubaix Femmes in 2025. Mathieu Heijboer, the team's performance director, told reporters earlier this week that the setup gives Van Aert and Christophe Laporte a "real advantage on the pavé" — a claim that suggests confidence behind the dismissive public rhetoric.
For Pogacar, the reconnaissance served a dual purpose. The wet cobblestones during his two-day ride provided critical data for Continental's new 35mm GP5000 S TR tyres, which the Slovenian is pushing to the absolute limit of his overhauled Colnago setup. Every sector, every pressure adjustment, every line through the mud and over the stones feeds into the marginal gains that could decide the race on Sunday.
Whether Van Aert's nonchalance is genuine or strategic matters little in the grand scheme. When the peloton rolls out of Compiègne on Sunday morning, 258 kilometres of cobbled brutality will reveal whose preparation was truly superior. But the verbal jousting between cycling's biggest stars offers a tantalising preview of what promises to be a race for the ages.