Tadej Pogacar has done it again. In a finish that followed the classic script of La Flèche Wallonne, a devastating attack on the last pass of the Mur de Huy was enough for the Slovenian to drop all those who had been able to follow his wheel until that moment. This was Pogacar’s second victory in this Belgian classic.
The race started in Ciney under a cold and rainy weather that accompanied the peloton for a good part of the 205 kilometers. A breakaway of five riders took the lead in the early stages: Shmidt, Guglielmi, Paquot, Desal and Deweirdt. As the kilometers passed, and after multiple moves from the peloton, the breakaway was reinforced by riders like Foss, Leknessund and Dversnes, who kept the pulse alive despite the push from the big blocks from behind.
Soudal-QuickStep and UAE Team Emirates-XRG alternated in control of the peloton, measuring their efforts well. Meanwhile, the likes of Skjelmose and Lenny Martinez suffered the consequences of weather or misfortune, with the Dane being ruled out after a crash.
The key moment would come on the final circuit of climbs, with Côte de Cherave and the dreaded Mur de Huy as the final filter. With each climb, natural selection left an ever-shrinking group at the front.
With 10 kilometers to go, the peloton caught up with the last survivors of the breakaway. Positions were fine-tuned, and the pace picked up on the approach to the final pass over the Mur. Evenepoel, Healy and Christen tried to surprise, but everyone knew the race would be decided on the iconic final ramps.
In the first meters of the Mur, Healy launched a valiant attack. But just seconds later, Poga?ar responded with a huge move. In a matter of meters, the Slovenian took off without looking back, leaving Evenepoel, Vauquelin and company unresponsive. He crossed the finish line with his arms in the air and enough of a lead to taste glory.
Behind Pogacar, Kévin Vauquelin (Arkéa – B&B Hotels) took a surprising and creditable second place, while Ben Healy (EF Education-EasyPost) completed the podium. Evenepoel, this time, had to settle for watching from behind as the rainbow jersey shone at the top of the podium.
Top 5 La Flèche Wallonne 2025
1. Tadej Poga?ar (UAE Team Emirates-XRG)
2. Kévin Vauquelin (Arkéa – B&B Hotels)
3. Ben Healy (EF Education-EasyPost)
4. Remco Evenepoel (Soudal-QuickStep)
5. Brandon McNulty (UAE Team Emirates-XRG