Tadej Pogacar closing on Chris Froome Velo d'Or and Tour de France career records ahead of 2025 title defence - what could he do next?
Updated 01/07/2025 at 09:51 GMT+1
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What next for Tadej Pogacar? After packing in more success into his still young career than most riders could dream of, the Slovenian's goals are now likely to focus on some of the sport's highest benchmarks. Ahead of defending his Tour de France title, with all the action live on TNT Sports and discovery+, we look at the cycling greats - and records - that might be in his sights.
The Gruppetto with Rob Hatch: Pogacar mighty but did Dauphine highlight weakness?
Video credit: TNT Sports
Most riders in cycling's elite would be happy with a few victories across their career.
To emphasise the sheer ludicrousness of what Tadej Pogacar has achieved, here is a list of his wins in 2025 alone: UAE Tour, Strade Bianche, Ronde van Vlaanderen, La Fleche Wallonne, Liege-Bastogne-Liege and Criterium du Dauphine.
That's six outright triumphs, and in his three other race starts, he recorded two seconds and a third.
And that's before we talk about his extraordinary, peloton-busting versatility that sees him just as at home in the one-day Classics as the multi-stage races.
It's no wonder that the Slovenian, still only 26, is already being considered as the greatest rider there has ever been.
After all, who else has done what he is doing? Who else has ever won consistently in every format road cycling has to offer? And often by huge margins?
Ahead of his Tour de France yellow jersey defence - kicking off this Saturday, July 5 with every stage live on TNT Sports and discovery+ - we look into the future and which cycling luminaries Pogacar could be on course to overtake.
Froome feats on the line
British great Chris Froome won his first Tour de France title in 2013 aged 28. Pogacar has three yellow jerseys at just 26.
Their careers might have had a completely different arc, but it's still a stark reminder of how long Pogacar conceivably has left in the sport - and the amount of time he therefore has to break all sorts of records.
Froome, set to retire at the end of this season, has two milestones that Pogacar can equal this year.
The first is the number of Tour de France titles, with Froome on four and Pogacar just one away on three.
Froome also won three Velo d'Or titles - cycling's equivalent of the Ballon d'Or - and again Pogacar is just one back, on two. Alberto Contador holds the all-time most Velo d'Ors, with four.
All these numbers - form, fitness and motivation permitting - are in sight to be overhauled by Pogacar, as surely is the overall Tour titles record of five, held jointly by Miguel Indurain, Bernard Hinault, Eddy Merckx and Jacques Anquetil.
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Tadej Pogacar, Chris Froome
Image credit: Getty Images
Which road records are left?
Could Pogacar get a clean sweep of all cycling's biggest titles? There are not, in truth, that many left.
But here is what Pogacar is yet to win: Milano-Sanremo, Paris-Roubaix, Vuelta a Espana, Olympic gold.
It might not be the longest list, but it does contain some of the sport's most signature events, and ones that - if he wins them - would go a long way to embellishing Pogacar's status as the cycling GOAT.
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'Don't beat it' - On board highlights catch Cavendish joke with Pogacar after record win
Video credit: TNT Sports
As well as these, there is also the aforementioned Tour titles landmark, and the stage-win record, broken so memorably by Mark Cavendish last year.
Cavendish, just after setting that high-water mark of 35, joked to Pogacar "don't beat it", but with the Slovenian already on 17 Tour stage wins, that - regrettably for the Briton - looks like being only a matter of time.
Could Pogacar go off-road?
Pogacar seems to know a thing or two about riding on gravel.
That much has been evident from the Slovenian turning in some astonishing displays in the gravel-heavy Strade Bianche in his three wins there.
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Highlights: Bloodied Pogacar wins second straight Strade Bianche
Video credit: TNT Sports
One wonders if Pogacar wants to give Mathieu van der Poel - the reigning gravel world champion - a run for his money on the terrain in future.
Pogacar was also formerly the Slovenian national champion in cyclo-cross back in 2018.
It's a format of the sport that sees the likes of Van der Poel, Wout van Aert and Britain's Tom Pidcock compete, but Pogacar is yet to properly dip his toe into the elite circuit.
Could that change after he hoovers up all the records road cycling has to offer? Will he give anyone else the chance to win anything?
Watch and stream the 2025 Tour de France live on TNT Sports and discovery+
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