Tadej Pogachar will carry number 1 on Saturday at Il Lombardia, and many are hoping for a second straight win for the Slovenian.

Tour de France nemesis Jonas Vingegaard (Jumbo Visma), Enric Mas (Movistar), and the retired Vincenzo Nibali and Alejandro Valverde are expected to be his rivals, but Pogachar, as usual, feels no upset or pressure. Pogachar, as usual, is neither upset nor feeling any pressure.

"There is pressure in every race I go to. I'm looking forward to Il Lombardia," he told the media, including Cycling News, gathered at the UAE Team Emirates Hotel near Bergamo on Friday afternoon.

In the 2022 season, Pogachar will once again dominate the UAE Tour, winning Strade Bianche and Tirreno Adriatico, contending for victory in the Tour de Flanders, winning the Grand Prix Cycliste de Montreal, and finishing second in the Tour de France. Of course, the Tour de France has always been the benchmark of his season, distorting the optics.

"There were some really great moments in 2022, and every victory was special.

"A stage of the Tour de France is always special, it feels like the first time you win. Montreal was definitely a big win and Strade Bianche was super awesome. I didn't make the podium in Flanders, but I enjoyed the race. I hope to make great memories again at Il Lombardia."

The monument to the fifth race of the season has lost some of its prestige, pushed down by the global calendar. Filippo Ganna's hour record and the opening of the Gravel World Championships also drew attention.

But Pogachar seems to be a traditionalist. He wants to win Il Lombardia and, like the sport's greats, he intends to end the season on the shores of Lake Como and under the autumn leaves.

"Maybe it's not as big as it used to be, maybe it's because it's one of the last races of the season. But I like it.

"It's a race for pure climbers. It's not as big as Flanders or Paris-Roubaix or any of the other monuments, but it's a pretty big race in Italy. For me it's a really beautiful race. To finish the season at Il Lombardia is a great thing for me."

Pogachal and his UAE Team Emirates teammates detailed the 2022 race route between Bergamo and Como on Thursday. Pogachar won in Bergamo last year and is well aware that the final climbs of San Fermo della Battaglia, Civiglio, and again San Fermo della Battaglia will determine the race.

"The course has changed, but the elevation is about the same. It's a hard climber's race. Lombardia is really hard, it's like a Grand Tour mountain stage.

Pogachar won the Tre Valli Varesine on Tuesday after the UAE Team Emirates team took control, opting to wait for the sprint rather than attack on a steep late climb.

He expects Movistar riders such as Enric Mas, Alejandro Valverde, Jonas Vingegaard, and Jumbo Visma to be threats. Mas won the Giro del Emilia last Saturday, dropping Pogachar. Vingegaard and Pogachar crossed paths in training on Thursday, but this will be their first meeting since the Tour de France.

"I have to take responsibility for the race, but that's ok. I want to have good legs so I can change things in the final."

"I think Enric and Jonas are a threat because they are showing good form and can climb. I want to be one of them."

Pogachar is from a different generation than Nibali and Valverde. He has respect for his elders, but if they end up finishing together at Como, he won't be giving them a retirement gift on Saturday.

"My race plan is to outrun them," he stated.

"Of course, I'm sad to see them leave the World Tour. We shared moments on the road as rivals and perhaps as friends, and both of them affected my career in some way."

He doesn't intend to have such a long career.

"Never say never, but I don't see myself running professionally for very long, and it takes a really strong mentality to continue racing at a high level when you're 40.

A win or loss in Il Lombardia would end Pogachar's 2022 season. He was tempted to compete in the UCI Gravel World Championships, but that will be another year of training and preparation opportunities.

Pogachar will attend the 2023 Tour de France presentation in Paris on October 27.

He will then head to Colombia for Rigoberto Urán's Giro di Rigo and spend his vacation in South America.

By the time Pogachar returns to Europe, it will be time to start training for 2023.