Tadej Pogačar impressively crowned himself European champion. One week after the Road World Championships, the Slovenian also won the road race at the European Championships following a long solo break. With 75 kilometers to go, Pogačar broke away from Remco Evenepoel and then finished solo. Evenepoel had to settle again for silver after being distanced by riders like Juan Ayuso and Paul Seixas in the finale.
The European Road Race started in Privas with a short climb and a flat 50-kilometer approach. Then followed two loops, each ridden three times: the large loop featuring the Saint-Romain-de-Lerps (7.1 km at 7%) and the Val d’Enfer (1.5 km at 9.9%), and the smaller loop with the Val d’Enfer and the Montée de Costebelle (300 m at 9.3%). In total, the Val d’Enfer appeared six times, with the last one 6.5 km from the finish.
Just like at last week’s World Championships in Rwanda, Tadej Pogačar and Remco Evenepoel were present in southern France, but this time Vuelta winner Jonas Vingegaard also competed. Several climbers and puncheurs, such as João Almeida and Romain Grégoire, also saw their chance at this championship.
The initial breakaway included two Dutch riders, Daan Hoole and Mathijs Paasschens. They rode ahead along with Mathias Vacek and were eventually joined by a strong chase group, featuring riders like Louis Vervaeke, Victor Langelotti, Marco Frigo, and Nicolas Prodhomme. Their gap grew to 2:30 and was controlled by Slovenia.
Vingegaard drops early; Evenepoel and Pogačar active from the start
The first acceleration in the peloton came with 110 kilometers remaining, on the second ascent of Saint-Romain-de-Lerps. The Belgian team stretched the peloton into a single file, dropping Jonas Vingegaard. The Danish favorite clearly had an off day and had to abandon early. Shortly after, Pavel Sivakov launched an attack, drawing Evenepoel and Pogačar out of their shells.
Evenepoel seized his moment to accelerate. He attacked on the descent, thinning the peloton further and putting pressure on the favorite group. The gap to the peloton remained small. After a brief regrouping, the next selection occurred on the Val d’Enfer. Jan Christen accelerated, then Evenepoel once again took the initiative. Only Pogačar and Paul Seixas could follow him.
The trio managed to bridge to the remnants of the breakaway, including Vervaeke, Hoole, and Paasschens, reopening the race situation 90 kilometers from the finish. A small chase group then caught up, but the front group never grew beyond 30 riders. Outsiders like Christian Scaroni, Mattias Skjelmose, Romain Grégoire, Pavel Sivakov, Juan Ayuso, Jan Christen, and Toms Skujins kept dreaming of a podium spot.
Watch the decisive attack by Tadej Pogačar here:
🚴🇪🇺 | The Big Two are present! 76 kilometers to the finish and Evenepoel and Pogacar are together! They were together... Pogacar goes solo! 💪💪 #euroroad25
📺 Stream the race on HBO Max pic.twitter.com/j9mXSDtDOS
— Eurosport Nederland (@Eurosport_NL) October 5, 2025
Pogačar solo on the last Saint-Romain-de-Lerps ascent
Belgium dictated the pace with Vervaeke, Steff Cras, and Tiesj Benoot up to the final Saint-Romain-de-Lerps climb (7.1 km at 7%). But with 76 kilometers to go, Pogačar had enough: the freshly minted world champion attacked six kilometers before the summit and dropped everyone except Evenepoel. The Belgian could briefly follow but eventually cracked with five kilometers to the top.
A strong Seixas joined Evenepoel, followed by Ayuso and Scaroni later on the long climb. Yet, Pogačar quickly opened a gap of 20 seconds. At the summit, his lead was 35 seconds over the Slovenian, who still had four chasers to contend with. Evenepoel & co closed to within 23 seconds but lost ground again on the Val d’Enfer. Starting the last 55 kilometers, Pogačar led by half a minute.
In pursuit, Evenepoel received little help from Ayuso, Seixas, and Scaroni, allowing Pogačar to extend his lead to over a minute. There was little pressure from behind, as a group including Sivakov and Skjelmose was already almost three minutes behind the solo leader.
photo: Fotopersburo Cor Vos
Evenepoel opens the chase on Pogačar, but can’t get closer
Evenepoel just couldn’t shake off the others, much to the frustration of the Belgian leader. With 38 kilometers remaining, he finally created a gap on the descent of the Val d’Enfer (with two climbs of that remaining). Ayuso, Seixas, and Scaroni kept watching each other and saw the Olympic champion ride away in the distance. Evenepoel was then 1:10 behind soloing Pogačar.
However, Evenepoel did not get much closer, as Pogačar kept pushing hard, though the gap briefly narrowed just under a minute. Was it going to be close? No, because Pogačar's lead hovered around the one-minute mark. The quality of performances by both the Slovenian and Belgian was clear from the gap to the Ayuso group, which grew to over three (!) minutes in the final lap. More than 18 riders were out of contention in the finale, as a large group was withdrawn from the race preventively on the local circuit.
On the last time over the Val d’Enfer, the battle for bronze was most interesting. The very young Seixas attacked repeatedly, dropping Ayuso. A resilient Scaroni clung on, seeming to crack just below the top to Seixas. He fought back on the ramp but was dropped on the descent after the summit by the 19-year-old Seixas. He gave it his all and flew to a French medal behind great champions Tadej Pogačar and Remco Evenepoel.
Here’s how Tadej Pogačar crossed the finish line:
🚴🇪🇺 | Pogacar is the best, Pogacar remains the best. The two-wheeled phenomenon beats Evenepoel again and also becomes European champion! 🙌🏳️🌈 #euroroad25
📺 Stream the race on HBO Max pic.twitter.com/0u9ALXuQhy
— Eurosport Nederland (@Eurosport_NL) October 5, 2025
Because, for the umpteenth time this year, no one could match Pogačar. After taking the world title, he now also claimed the European road title, meaning we won’t see the white-blue European champion jersey over the coming year. Alongside Evenepoel and Seixas, he colored the podium: Tadej Pogačar was by far the best at this European Road Cycling Championships.
Evenepoel, Seixas, Scaroni, and a surprisingly strong Toms Skujins rounded out the top five, leaving Ayuso outside the top 5. The European Championships proved to be a true attrition race, with immense gaps and few finishers.
UEC Road European Championships| Rank | Rider | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 04:59:29 | |
| 2 | + 31 | |
| 3 | + 03:41 | |
| 4 | + 04:04 | |
| 5 | + 04:16 | |
| 6 | + 04:21 | |
| 7 | + 05:01 | |
| 8 | + 05:55 | |
| 9 | + 05:59 | |
| 10 | + 06:52 |
