Cycling, Merckx: "I would like Pogacar and Evenepoel to try for the hour record"

Tadej Pogacar and Remco Evenepoel (Ansa)

Rome, 19 June 2025 - Fresh off his 80th birthday , Eddy Merckx has time to dream big about contemporary cycling, that of the great phenomena who challenge each other in the Grand Tours and the Classics : to these two scenarios the Cannibal would like to add a third, the oval of the track to go hunting for the hour record. An invitation clearly addressed to Tadej Pogacar and Remco Evenepoel .

Merckx's statements

Intercepted by the microphones of AS , the Belgian spoke about a subject he knows well, one of the many laurels of his career: on October 25, 1972 , in the Velodromo Augustin Melgar in Mexico City , the record arrived with a distance of 49.432 km , 779 meters more than the one signed on October 10, 1968 by the Danish Ole Ritter before the 51.151 km recorded, always in the same location, by Francesco Moser in 1984. From October 7, 2022 , Filippo Ganna 's 56.792 km has been in force: since then, practically no attempts to overcome a very high bar, and for Merckx the time has come for at least one between Pogacar and Evenepoel to attempt this feat, each with their own characteristics. "The Slovenian is the best, the most complete, while the Belgian has incredible aerodynamics. It would be great if they could take on this challenge."

Who knows if the two, opponents in the Classics before facing each other again at the Tour de France 2025 , will accept the invitation: in the meantime Merckx , in the full climate of nostalgia for his first 80 years , remembers his attempt and reveals some behind the scenes. "The hour record was an objective of mine, without which my career would not have been complete. At the end of 1972 I felt a bit tired, I was not in shape, but after weeks of specific preparation in Italy I recovered. We crossed the Atlantic to Mexico . Everything went well, but I suffered a lot. After that effort, for a week I could barely walk". From Merckx 's glorious past to the equally glorious present of Pogacar , the big favorite to win the Tour de France 2025 . "What I like about him is that he really tries to win, he never backs down. He's going for the win, and that's nice. Sometimes he reminds me of what I was trying to achieve. He'll clearly be the man to beat. What I saw in the spring was impressive." Jonas Vingegaard permitting: without forgetting Evenepoel , who is a candidate to become more than just a third wheel in the most anticipated duel of the year. "I hope Vingegaard will do better than at the beginning of the year. He wasn't doing very well before the crash in Paris-Nice . Evenepoel , who hasn't been riding much because of the crash in December, might have energy reserves and freshness. But following Pogacar in the high mountains won't be easy for anyone."