Amstel Gold Race 2025: Mattias Skjelmose outsprints Tadej Pogacar and Remco Evenepoel to take epic victory - 'I didn't believe it'
Published 20/04/2025 at 18:04 GMT+1
A thrilling finish to the men's Amstel Gold Race came down to a three-up sprint, from which the unfancied Mattias Skjelmose was victorious over Remco Evenepoel and Tadej Pogacar. The world champion attacked at 48km to go, and looked to have ridden away, only for Evenepoel and Skjlemose to bring him back inside 10km. The Dane left it late to launch, winning the sprint by half a wheel on the line.
'It's incredible' - Skjelmose stuns Pogacar, Evenepoel in photo finish to win Amstel Gold Race
Video credit: TNT Sports
A perfectly-timed sprint saw Mattias Skjelmose (Lidl-Trek) snatch Amstel Gold Race victory on the line over titans Remco Evenepoel (Soudal-QuickStep) and Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates-XRG.)
After Pogacar headed out solo with 50km remaining, Skjelmose was the rider to make the concerted effort to bring him back. He was later joined by Evenepoel and between them, they were able to achieve the unprecedented.
The 24-year-old Dane, who had never previously won a one-day WorldTour race, was able to make it up the final ascent of the Cauberg in the company of the world and Olympic champions, but was an unfancied third favourite to win the sprint.
He used that position to his advantage, leaving it to the last second to put his face into the wind, and pull himself past Pogacar at the line in a stunning photo finish.
The 59th men's Amstel Gold Race signalled cycling's one-day classics season's switch modes from the cobbles to the punchy climbs of Ardennes week, even as it featured plenty of riders equally competent in both contexts.
None more so than Pogacar, who was a strong favourite to go one better in Limberg than he had on the velodrome of Roubaix last Sunday. Pogacar's toughest competition was set to be Evenepoel. The Olympic champion returned from an extended lay-off after a training accident over the winter to beat Wout van Aert (Visma-Lease a Bike) in De Brabantse Pijl on Friday.
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'It's incredible' - Skjelmose stuns Pogacar, Evenepoel in photo finish to win Amstel Gold Race
Video credit: TNT Sports
The 34 climbs over the 256km AMGR course were all limited in length, but attritional, adding up to 4000m of climbing.
The hard and hilly start made it difficult for a break to establish itself. When it eventually it, it contained eight able but unfancied riders: Michel Hessmann (Movistar), Rémi Cavgna (Groupama-FDJ), Robert Stannard (Bahrain-Victorious), Emiel Verstrynge (Alpecin-Deceuninck), Cedric Beullens (Lotto), Jarrad Drizners (Lotto), Hartthijs De Vries (Unibet Tietema Rockets), Jelle Johannink (Unibet Tietema Rockets).
Their lead was allowed to extend to around 4'30" before the UAE Emirates-led peloton began to chip away over the next dozen or so ascents. With 80km to go, as they took on the famous Cauberg for the first time, the peloton applied the pressure and it began to fall apart. The next three hills reduced the escape to just Hessmann, before he too was reabsorbed by the bunch.
Pavel Sivakov (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) picked up an already high pace, in preparation for a predicted long-range attack by Pogacar.
The major move came on the Gulpenberg, and although Pogacar was involved, he was the responder, rather than instigator of it. Julian Alaphilippe (Tudor Pro Cycling) looked more sprightly than he had for years, as he led the world champion off the front.
The pair soon forged a measurable gap, but did not ride together for long. On the slopes of the Kruisberg, Pogacar's seated power proved too much for the Frenchman, and it seemed as if we were set for another long range solo victory from the Slovenian.
He was able to extend his gap as a reduced bunch could not find a way of working together, and seemed more inclined to suppress each other's counter-attacks than cooperate in service to the greater goal of reeling in Pogacar.
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'I didn't believe it' - Skjelmose on passing Pogacar in emotional interview
Video credit: TNT Sports
Skjelmose was the only rider to make a move stick, but while he was able to pull away from the peloton, he struggled to eat into Pogacar's lead, which had eked past 30 seconds and looked likely to balloon at any second.
Only when Evenepoel was able to bridge across did the deficit to Pogacar stabilise but it still looked unlikely that it would reduce. Pogacar had never before been beaten in such a scenario and it was impossible to see it happening, until the seconds started to slip away faster than the kilometres.
Slowly but surely, the pair chipped away at the lead until they could again see him down the road. Pogacar had clearly been told what was happening behind and with 10km to go, the Slovenian had accepted the inevitable. The solo win denied, he would have to do it on or off the tough final ascent of the Cauberg.
Evenepoel, who had done most of the work, was obliged to lead the trio onto and up the Cauberg, and then lead out the sprint to the line. Pogacar followed.
He had not reckoned for Skjelmose, who had left it late to put his nose in the wind, and used the slipstream to slingshot past, draw level with Pogacar and win by half a wheel.
"I was riding for the podium, which would be a really big result for me," the race-winner said. "I don't know what happened. I didn't believe it when I passed Pogacar. I thought something was wrong.
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