Il Lombardia: Tadej Pogačar and Jonas Vingegaard square off for first time since Tour de France

Tadej Pogačar and Jonas Vingegaard are cycling's newest rivalry. They will meet in Il Lombardia on Saturday for the fifth monument of the season. Pogasar is the defending champion. Vegaards won the Tour de France in July. Their careers are intertwined.  They are favorites to win every race they start. The final monument is a one-day classic. It will be held in northern Italy. There will only be a few riders left on the first pass. After that, it will come down to the top favorites. This is what everyone is hoping for.

Tadej Pogačar and Jonas Vingegaard have not raced together since Tour de France. Pogasar has won more races than Vegaards. They have both finished ahead of their Danish rival when they have faced off before. Pogičars won the GP Priessnitz and the Tour of l'Avenir in 2018.

Pogačar and Vingegaard have only met nine times in one-day races. Pogac's aggressive and explosive style is better suited to the classics. Vingsaard won his first one day race this spring at the Drôme Classic in France. Five of Pogac's 45 oneday victories have come in such races, all of them high-level quality.

Alejandro Valverde and Vincenzo Nibali are retiring. Tadej Pogačar and Jonas Vingegaard are going to race Il Lombardia on Saturday. Pogasar won GP de Montréal and Tre Valli Varesine and finished second at Giro dell’Emilia. Vingsegaar finished 2nd at CRO Race based on time bonuses.