Colnago, the bicycle sponsor of UAE Team Emirates, is holding Tadej Pogachar back, retired classics specialist Tom Bohnen claimed.

Speaking on Flanders' Wielerclub Wattage (opens in new tab) podcast with fellow Belgian and former Liège-Bastogne-Liège winner Dirk De Wolf, the two discussed the quality of the peloton's manufacturers today.

"On these bikes, he will be decisively faster," De Wolf began. He quoted an earlier statement in which he said that if Pogachar were given bikes from Team Jumbovisma, Ineos Grenadier, and Sourdal Quickstep, his competitors would not stand a chance. Cervélo, S-Works, Pinarello, [if he rode them] he would run a few watts faster and better."

UAE Team Emirates has been sponsored by Italian brand Colnago since the team transformed from Lampre-Merida ahead of the 2017 season. Pogachar joined the team in 2019 from Slovenia's Ljubljana Gusto Saurum at the age of just 20 and has spent his entire WorldTour career with the team. During that time, he has had a prodigious career with the brand, winning the Tour de France, Il Lombardia, and Tirreno Adriatico twice each, as well as Strade Bianche, and winning the Liege - Bastogne - Liege race himself.

Jumbo Visma has been riding a Cervelo bike since switching from Bianchi in 2021; Soudal-QuickStep has been riding Specialized bikes since 2006, and this past season Boonen himself won the Tour de France riding a Tarmac SL2 He won the sprinters' class.

"I think Tom [Boonen] can answer very easily what the difference is between a very good bike, a slightly inferior bike, and a top bike," de Wolff continued. 'It's like the difference between a Ferrari and a Porsche. Tom."

"I think there is very little difference between the top five of the manufacturers," Boonen replied.

"There is still a huge gap between the top five and the top ten or top fifteen.

Asked if he considered Colnago out of the top five, Boonen agreed. He said, "Colnago is catching up, but it's still an older type of bike and they haven't mastered super-hyper-aero yet.

Boonen's criticism came months after Colnago introduced two new top-class bikes. During the 2022 Tour, when Pogachar lost to Jumbo Visma's Jonas Vingegaard, Colnago introduced the TT1, a wild time trial bike with a unique bottle forming part of the frame's aerodynamic profile.

Around the same time, the brand unveiled the prototype Prototipo, consisting of four different carbon layups. Later, the preferred version was launched as the 2023 Colnago V4Rs.

Despite its long and storied history, which began in 1952, Colnago has reportedly experienced difficulties in recent years: in 2020, 88-year-old founder Ernesto Colnago was forced to sell a majority stake to Abu Dhabi-based investment fund Chimera Investments LLC forced to sell his majority stake to Abu Dhabi-based investment fund Chimera Investments LLC.

"I am confident that Colnago will grow, but it is only recently that it has taken off," Bohnen continued. 'It almost got off its butt a few years ago and had to be sold because it was basically bankrupt.'

Interestingly, prior to the 2023 season, the UAE Team Emirates team stopped using Campagnolo as its groupset and wheel sponsor, paid to move to Shimano's Dura-Ace Di2 groupset, and based on its own wind tunnel testing, wheel The team reportedly chose its sponsor for the

Pogachar is already known for his attention to detail, and given the recent component replacements, it is clear that his team will not cut corners in its quest for a third Tour de France title. The fact that the team has conducted its own tests and continues to ride Italian brands is in itself a testament to the relationship between the two.

The Slovenian has only experienced nine days of racing so far in 2023, but has already won four times. Whether that is evidence against Bohnen's claims or simply confirmation of Pogachal's exceptional talent cannot be proven.

The Wielerclub Wattage podcast is broadcast in Flemish, and the quotes were translated by Edith Coen.