All-conquering UAE Team Emirates-XRG rider Tadej Pogacar has few boxes left to tick in a career that has seen him surge to cycling greatness and arguably become the finest rider to grace the sport.
On Sunday, the 27-year became only the fifth man to win five Tour de France titles in a race that saw him finish six-and-a-half minutes ahead of second-placed Remco Evenepoel.
Pogacar went into the Tour overwhelming favourite to claim the yellow jersey for a third consecutive year but, much to the dismay of his peloton rivals, the pressure of top billing would prove no obstacle to the Slovenian superstar.
This latest season of dominance has seen Pogacar win three races for the first time after tasting victory at the Tour de Suisse, Milano-Sanremo and Tour de Romandie.
The one disappointment came in a race Pogacar had earmarked as a key target for the campaign – the Paris-Roubaix – which saw him lose an enthralling sprint finish to Wout van Aert, denying him the only missing Classics title in his collection.
The other major crown still eluding Pogacar is the Vuelta a Espana which he has appeared in once when he finished third back in 2019 as a neo-pro rider.
In what was his first Grand Tour appearance, the then 20-year-old still managed to win three stages producing a performance that gave clear signs of the success that lay ahead.
He has not taken part since, preferring to focus his campaigns on the Tour de France and then taking a break rather than launching straight into the Spanish race.
Vuelta race director Javier Guillen insists he is “very optimistic” that Pogacar will race. “The stages are very suitable for him to put on the show he's known for,” Guillen told Spanish newspaper AS. "And “esides, coming to the Vuelta to win it is also a great springboard for him to repeat his victory as world champion in Canada. Therefore, this is the best year for Tadej to come."
The only previous year Pogacar took part in two Grand Tours was 2024 when he won both the Giro d'Italia – at the first attempt – and the Tour.
Inevitably, he was asked about the Vuelta after Sunday's Tour finale. “At the moment I don’t feel fresh to ride the Vuelta if it starts tomorrow, but I can still decide within two weeks,” Pogacar said.
The Vuelta starts in his adopted home of Monaco on August 22 and it remains to be seen whether he feels up to the task of becoming only the ninth male rider to have won all three Grand Tours.
Prince Albert of Monaco has already weighed in on the debate by suggesting that Pogacar would be on the starting line in the principality. “If the prince says that, then there is a good chance,” smiled Pogacar when asked about the comments.
His agent, Alex Carera, has revealed that Pogacar will be discussing the Vuelta with UAE Team Emirates-XRG bosses as part of their Tour de France debrief.
“The UAE management and coach Javier Sola have planned a meeting [on Tuesday] with Tadej to decide, based on how the Tour ended, what to do next,” Carera said in an interview with Sky Sports Italia.
“That includes the World Championships [September 20-27 in Canada] for sure and to decide whether or not to ride the Vuelta. I think a decision will be announced at the right moment, probably in about a week or ten days.
“They'll decide together what is best for Tadej. UAE [Team Emirates] has always thought about what is best for Tadej's long-term career, rather than any short-term goals. Considering his success in Grand Tour and the Classics, I think the decisions made have been right so far.”
Pogacar will travel home to Komenda in Slovenia this week for his Pogi Challenge charity event and a criterium on Friday. Also on the agenda will be supporting his partner Uraka Zigart at the Tour de France Femmes which takes place August 1-9.
After winning the 2025 Tour, Pogacar spoke openly about the threat of burnout due to relentless cycling calendar. “Burnouts happen in sports, in a lot of sports, mental burnout, physical burnout,” he said a day before announcing that he would not be taking on the Vuelta.
“We train a lot … some riders have fatigue too early in the season and then the team needs you to race, race, race. In the end, you just keep going into this circle and you never recover.”
On Sunday, Pogacar would come back to the same theme, while also clarifying his previous comments. “I didn’t say that I had a burnout, but that I was aware that it could happen,” he said.
“That’s also why I don’t say right now ‘I go to the Vuelta, I do this and that and all the races’. I also need to think about this and keep my feet on the ground.”
