Is Pogacar less of a favorite in the World Championships after what happened on Sunday?

The time trial on Sunday, which marked the beginning of the 2025 Kigali World Championships, left us with a human Tadej Pogacar who was even unable to reach the podium positions while leaving a grown and motivated Remco Evenepoel after being able to surpass the Slovenian in the race. The question is whether this is a sign for the road race next Sunday or simply a bad day that will feature a Tadej Pogacar eager for revenge.

Options to win the 2025 Kigali World Championships open up after Pogacar's defeat in the time trial

Before the start of the World Championships and after the exhibition at the GP Montreal, a new rainbow jersey for Tadej Pogacar seemed like the only possible option in Rwanda. However, the time trial on Sunday has presented us with a vulnerable Tadej Pogacar, which perhaps has given wings to his rivals for the road race.

It's not that he didn't achieve victory, but the fact that he didn't even make it to the podium could mean that the tough Kigali course may not be as suitable for Tadej Pogacar as previously thought. A toughness that must be combined with the altitude, let's remember that Pogacar has not trained at altitude since before the Tour de France, the heat, and humidity of the African capital.

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However, it could also simply be that the Slovenian had a bad day. While Pogacar is a great time trialist, it is not the same to compete in a time trial in a Grand Tour, where accumulated fatigue from previous days and recovery capacity are key, as in a standalone time trial where pure specialists, which Pogacar is not, impose their ability to ride on the time trial bike and their finely tuned aerodynamics.

In any case, seeing a human Pogacar gives hope to his rivals for the race on Sunday, especially for a Remco Evenepoel who seems to be in optimal form both in view of his performance in the time trial and the performance he showed in the Tour of Britain, a race on terrain very similar to that of Kigali, with stages full of constant climbs. Besides, he benefits from having what is clearly the strongest team in this 2025 Kigali World Championships.

In addition to the Belgian, Tadej Pogacar could have an enemy at home, as both Jay Vine and Isaac del Toro have also arrived in Rwanda in excellent form and could be serious contenders for victory, although in both cases the question arises whether the 268 kilometers of the race will be too much for their abilities.

In fact, the distance of the Kigali World Championships, those 268 kilometers, combined with the tremendous accumulated elevation gain, the highest since that famous World Championships in Colombia, are a decisive factor and there, Pogacar can boast of being one of the only four participating cyclists who know what it is to win a Monument, well, in the case of Tadej Pogacar there are quite a few. The others are his teammates Primoz Roglic and Matej Mohoric and, who will be his main rival, Remco Evenepoel.

We will find out next Sunday in a race that, thanks to what happened in the time trial, has gained in excitement and uncertainty and that, given the tough profile, promises to be one of the best World Championship events ever.