'Tadej will do Tadej things' is one of those quotes that has become shorthand for Tadej Pogačar's jaw-dropping ability seemingly to choose how and when he wins a race, and although the route of Strade Bianche has been changed for 2026, at least one of his key teammates feels it will make absolutely no difference to the Slovenian's strategy on Saturday in the Italian Classic.
The new version of Strade Bianche will have 16 kilometres less of gravel roads and will be 10 kilometres shorter, causing some top contenders to predict a more open race.
However, as Omloop Het Nieuwsblad podium finisher and Pogačar teammate Florian Vermeersch (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) told Cyclingnews earlier this week, regardless of the distance or difficulty, he has no doubt that the three-times winner will once again race as aggressively as ever.
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"I haven't looked closely at the parcours, I think it's maybe a little different, but I think the racing will be exactly the same," Vermeersch said.
"And in any case, starting with Tadej means we always race for the win."
Strategically speaking, Strade is a much more straightforward affair than Omloop, the former Paris-Roubaix podium finisher recognised, being much more of a war of attrition.
"They always get dropped in the back on each section, and then you end up in the final with the 20 or 30 best guys who battle it out for the win," he explained to Cyclingnews before the start of Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne.
"So in that regard it's a much simpler race and tactics have less of an influence than these kinds of events [in Belgium]."
Vermeersch was talking before Wellens crashed out of Kuurne with a broken collarbone, but there seems little chance that UAE will be lacking in firepower as a result on Saturday in Strade Bianche either way. And as he pointed out, that often considerable superiority in the team in the Classics doesn't just come down to a certain Slovenian.
"I think that is true of everywhere – in every race we start, we have a great team. And that's the nice thing about riding here also for UAE," he said.
A DNF in 2020 but then 18th in 2025 – when Pogačar launched a trademark lone attack from distance – Vermeersch recognised that his strong performance in Omloop was exactly the sign he was hoping for personally as he hits the main Classics period.
Vermeersch was the one rider from the main group of favourites to launch an attack before Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Premier Tech) blasted off on the Molenberg, and he then worked with the Dutchman before being dropped on the Muur de Geraardsbergen.
His role on Saturday will be radically different, though, where Vemeersch will likely be expected to help soften up the opposition for Pogačar in the first half of the race.
"Omloop just gives me a lot of confirmation that I have good legs for the upcoming weeks," Vermeersch said.
"Now I can be confident that next week, my legs also will be fine. We're starting here with Tadej, and that means you always want to be at your best. So it's just good for morale."
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