Tadej Pogačar wrapped up another historic season of success, winning Il Lombardia for a record fifth consecutive time, but he remained as humble and grounded as ever.
Pogačar revealed that Ernesto Colnago called Eddy Merckx behind the Il Lombardia podium, and the two greats of the sport exchanged a few personal words, but he again shrugged off comparisons with the Cannibal.
"I don't like this kind of comparison. It was cool to talk to Eddy, but nobody likes to be compared with somebody else all the time," Pogačar said.
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Pogačar has now won ten Monuments and 108 career victories, but statistics mean little to him.
"When I was just a kid and dreaming to be a professional, I didn't even know what a Monument was," he revealed.
"We were just dreaming to be as cool like the Tour de France riders and to maybe someday be at the start. That was the dream. I feel extremely lucky that I managed to come so far. It was never imaginable what we would achieve."
Pogačar played down being different or better than anyone else. "Everybody's unique in their own way," he suggested.
"Maybe I just stand out because I'm lucky enough to win so many races, but everybody is different, and we should embrace that. Everybody should feel good about themselves."
The crowds went wild for Pogačar in cycling-mad Bergamo as he crossed the finish line and held five fingers in the air, but he was happier to dedicate his win to teammate Rafał Majka, who again played a vital support role but ended his 15-year career at Il Lombardia.
Pogačar shouted "Thank you, Rafa" to the television camera in the final kilometre and then lifted Majka on his shoulders as UAE Team Emirates-XRG celebrated yet another major victory together.
"I think this one is quite special," Pogačar said of his fifth Il Lombardia win.
"We all know that Rafa retired today, it was his last race. He was my mentor, my big brother in cycling for the last five years. I wanted to win for him. He had an amazing, amazing career. He's a rider that all the kids should look up to. That's why I think today is a special, special victory."
Pogačar has ended his racing season but will be back in the saddle on Sunday for the S Klanca V Klanc Pogačar challenge in his hometown of Komenda in Slovenia. He will ride with thousands of fans and then try to catch as many of them as he can on his local climb.
He will also ride a four-rider Andorra Cycling Masters criterium on October 19, challenging Jonas Vingegaard, Primož Roglič and teammate Isaac del Toro. Then it will be time for some holidays, before thinking about 2026.
