‘It is impossible to win everything he has won’ – Tadej Pogacar

‘Merckx … is in a class by himself’ – Jacques Anquetil

A UNIQUE ACCOUNT OF MERCKX'S DOMINANCE OF CYCLING, WITH PREVIOUSLY UNTOLD ANECDOTES AND MEMORIES.

WITH AN AFTERWORD BY EDDY MERCKX.

For over 50 years, Eddy Merckx has reigned supreme as the greatest cyclist of all time, winning every bike race going: Tour de France, Giro d’Italia, La Vuelta, The Monuments, World Championships and the Hour Record. From 1967 to 1978, his insatiable appetite for victory won him over 500 races. With Tadej Pogacar's recent exploits inviting comparison with the man they called the ‘Cannibal’, this book re-examines Merckx’s incredible lifetime of racing.

Former L'Équipe journalist Guy Roger has traversed Europe to talk to the officials and journalists who were there, to interview Merckx’s former adversaries and teammates, and to reveal their accounts of racing with and against him. He has emerged with a unique and fascinating analysis of Merckx’s incredible career.

Filled with anecdotes, insights and memories – many previously untold – this unique celebration features a moving Afterword from the great man himself. Eddy Merckx: Out On His Own sheds new light on the great man’s courage, his self-doubts, the pain he suffered and the Merckx madness which drove him to often unnecessary, 100km-plus solo attacks.

It’s the sheer quality, depth and breadth of his wins that sets him apart * Cyclist magazine *
Eddy Merckx … is the greatest cyclist to have ever lived and it is unlikely that in this age of specialism the Belgian will ever be matched. * The Telegraph *
Masterful book -- Andy McGrath, author of 'Tadej Pogacar: Unstoppable'
Merckx is simply one of the greatest athletes that has ever lived. -- Phil Cavell, author of 'The Midlife Cyclist'

Guy Roger is a former journalist at L'Équipe and specialises in cycling. He wrote the successful autobiography of Luc Leblanc, Moi, Lucho, as well as Bernal et les fils de la Cordillère.