In this cycling news roundup, we step back and look at the dominance of the Big Three (Evenepoel, van der Poel and Pogačar) — and wonder when it might end. Plus we catch you up on some of the lesser, late-season races (including one won by…Tadej Pogačar), and look ahead to a uniquely strange race coming up in Andorra.
TOP STORY:
- When Will the One-Day Race Reign of the Big Three End?
RACE NEWS
- McNulty Storms to CRO Race GC Win
- Meeus Outsprints Rivals to Claim Binche-Chimay-Binche Win
- Pogi Squeezes in Another Win Two Days After Euros
- Pogačar, Vingegaard, Roglic & Del Toro to Square off in Wacky Andorra Race
- Scheldeprijs Women to Be Part of UCI ProSeries
RIDER & TEAM NEWS
- Israel-Premier Tech Orients Away from Explicit Israeli Affiliation
- Dutchman Marsman to Join van der Poel at Alpecin Deceuninck
VIDEO Feature
- The PEZ 2024 Lombardia Preview Chat with Chris Horner
When Will the One-Day Race Reign of the Big Three End?
In winning the European Championships Road Race, Tadej Pogačar nosed into the only remaining significant one-day race not recently won by him, Remco Evenepoel or Mathieu van der Poel — aka The Big Three (not to be confused with the Big Three of stage racing, since Jonas Vingegaard is a practical non-factor in single-day competitions).
The table below lays out just how dominant these three riders have been: Of the 30 races since 2023 that we would call “significant” (Worlds/Olympics/Euros + Monuments + Near-Monuments), the Big Three of won 23. With just a couple of exceptions, including Skjelmose’s surprise win at Amstel Gold this year, the only times one of the Three doesn’t win is when the profile is flat enough to open up to other contenders — or when they simply don’t show up.
Worlds and Euros were once the domain of sprinters and puncheurs, but as course design has gravitated (as it were) towards ascent-fests, those riders have largely been ruled out of likely contention, and even decide not to show up. In fact, should the trend continue, the Big Three may well narrow to the Big Two, as MVDP self-selects out of starting even races that he once won, albeit on punchier courses.
As we wrote in Thursday’s EuroTrash, the only other crack we foresee in the Big Three’s stranglehold (apart from severe crashes or illness, which we don’t want to see) is the emergence of a new hyper-talented rider. Whether that’s Paul Seixas, or a matured Isaac del Toro, we’re not sure — but we do look forward at least to something like The Big Four.
| Race | 2023 Winner | 2024 Winner | 2025 Winner |
| World Championship RR | Mathieu van der Poel | Tadej Pogačar | Pogačar |
| Olympic Road Race | Remco Evenepoel | ||
| Milan-San Remo | van der Poel | Jasper Philipsen | van der Poel |
| Tour of Flanders | Pogačar | van der Poel | Pogačar |
| Paris-Roubaix | van der Poel | van der Poel | van der Poel |
| Liège-Bastogne-Liège | Evenepoel | Pogačar | Pogačar |
| Giro di Lombardia | Pogačar | Tadej Pogačar | ?? |
| Strade Bianche | Tom Pidcock | Pogačar | Pogačar |
| Amstel Gold | Pogačar | Pidcock | Mattias Skjelmose |
| Fleche Wallone | Pogačar | Stephen Williams | Pogačar |
| European Championships RR | Christophe Laporte | Arnaud De Lie | Pogačar |
RACE NEWS
McNulty Storms to CRO Race GC Win
Brandon McNulty (UAE Team Emirates) became the first rider to win the CRO Race twice, defending his 2023 title with a 1:39 lead over Edoardo Zambanini (Bahrain Victorious). Racing largely in extremely wet, autumnal conditions, the 27-year-old American sealed his third stage-race win of the year after earlier victories in Poland and Luxembourg.
Frenchman Paul Magnier (Soudal Quick-Step) claimed the points jersey with four stage wins, while Oded Kogut (Israel–Premier Tech) repeated his 2024 success by winning the rain-soaked final stage into Zagreb. Casper van der Woude (Metec-Solarwatt) took best climber honors, and Jakob Omrzel (Bahrain Victorious) was best young rider.
Meeus Outsprints Rivals to Claim Binche-Chimay-Binche Win
Pogi Squeezes in Another Win Two Days After Euros
Tadej Pogačar continued his unstoppable run with another commanding victory at the Tre Valli Varesine, just two days after the European Road Race Championships. The world champion characteristically broke away from the lead group with just over 20 kilometers to go — quite late for him — and soloed to the finish in Varese.
Despite strong competition from Primož Roglič, Egan Bernal, and Isaac Del Toro, no rider could match Pogačar’s power. Behind him, Danish rider Withen Albert Philipsen sprinted to an impressive second, with Julian Alaphilippe taking third.
The win marks Pogačar’s nineteenth triumph of the season and further cements his dominance ahead of Saturday’s Tour of Lombardy.
Pogačar, Vingegaard, Roglic & Del Toro to Square off in Wacky Andorra Race
On Sunday, October 19th, a very special one-day race will take place in Andorra. In the inaugural edition of the Andorra Cycling Masters, just four riders will compete for victory — but what the event lacks in quantity of racers, it makes up with quality, pitting Tadej Pogacar , Jonas Vingegaard , Primoz Roglic, and Isaac Del Toro against one another.
The Andorra Cycling Masters isn’t a UCI race, but this is a deliberate choice, explains organizer David Quintana. “We want to have four incredibly good riders race together without the support of teams,” Sporza quotes . “This way, fans can see every year who the champion of champions is.”
The four competitors will compete twice: After an eight-kilometer uphill time trial on the slopes of the Coll de la Gallina – one of Andorra’s most famous climbs – there will also be a regular race of just 32 kilometers in the heart of Andorra la Vella.
In addition to the sporting competition, the organizers behind the brand-new event will also release a documentary in which fans will see the “human side” of the cyclists, sports newspaper AS reports.
The documentary will reveal what goes on behind the scenes and strengthen Andorra’s position as a leading destination for cycling enthusiasts. The documentary will be available to watch on various on-demand content platforms later this year.
Scheldeprijs Women to Be Part of UCI ProSeries
Two Flanders Classics races will receive a category upgrade on next year’s road cycling calendar: Dwars door Vlaanderen for women had already been announced to join the UCI Women’s WorldTour. In addition, Scheldeprijs for women will belong to the UCI ProSeries from 2026 for the next three seasons.
“We are extremely proud to take this step,” says Jack Vissers, chairman of the Schotense wielerclub. “Over the past five editions, the interest from teams to participate in Schoten has been particularly strong. We are looking forward to welcoming all Women’s WorldTour teams in the search for a successor to Elisa Balsamo.”
“This is a next step in the Closing the Gap program of Flanders Classics,” says CEO Tomas Van Den Spiegel. “Adding the Scheldeprijs for women was one of the very first steps we took, with the support of our presenting partner for women’s cycling, KPMG. That we are now…able to bring each of our women’s races to the same level as the men’s races is a continuation of a project in which we have enthusiastically taken on a pioneering role.”
RIDER & TEAM NEWS
Israel-Premier Tech Orients Away from Explicit Israeli Affiliation
Embattled team Israel-Premier Tech announced Monday that it will undergo a full rebrand ahead of the 2026 season, moving away from its current Israeli identity. Founded 11 years ago as Cycling Academy, the team grew from developing riders in non-traditional cycling nations to winning Tour de France stages. Owner Sylvan Adams will step back from daily involvement to focus on his role with the World Jewish Congress. A new name and direction will be announced soon, continuing the team’s global talent mission.
Dutchman Marsman to Join van der Poel at Alpecin Deceuninck
Watch the PEZ YOUTUBE Channel here
With Lombardia looming large this weekend, it’s not a bad time to revisit Pez’s 2024 Lombardia Preview video chat with Chris Horner – below…
• Gotta Comment, though or suggestion? Drop us a line at Content@PezCyclingNews.com
Follow PEZ INSTAGRAM here
The post EUROTRASH: When Will the One-Day Race Reign of the Big Three End? appeared first on PezCycling News.
