UAE riders dropping like flies — who will support Tadej Pogačar at the Tour de France?

Tadej Pogacar will not know — at least officially — which seven riders will support him at this summer's Tour de France until close to the start. UAE Team Emirates-XRG plan to announce their eight-man Tour squad as late as possible, sports director Andrej Hauptman has revealed to Slovenian broadcaster RTVSLO.

Pogacar has not raced since early May, when he wrapped up the overall title at the Tour de Romandie with four stage victories. His great Tour rival Jonas Vingegaard went on to win the Giro d'Italia, while Pogačar retreated to an altitude training camp. Hauptman confirms that UAE have been watching Vingegaard closely. "But on the other hand, we are mainly focused on ourselves," he said. "We know what we need to do to arrive at the Tour as well prepared as possible. We already knew Jonas was a top cyclist, and I certainly had no doubt that he would be back at the highest level."

That Pogacar will arrive in top form in July seems beyond question. But what about his teammates? João Almeida already admitted during the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes that, after a miserable spring, he will not be ready for the Tour. Spanish outlet Sport reported on Tuesday that Marc Soler will also miss July's race.

The 32-year-old Spaniard was one of three UAE co-leaders at the Giro d'Italia when he crashed heavily on stage two and was forced to abandon. Soler sustained a pelvic fracture. It is bad news for Pogacar: Soler has been at his side for every Tour de France victory in recent years.

Soler will undergo further assessment next week to evaluate how his pelvis fracture is healing. Even his participation in the Vuelta a España is in doubt. Beyond Pogacar's regular lieutenant, Adam Yates (concussion) and Jay Vine (concussion and broken elbow) are also set to miss the Tour after their own crashes at the Giro.

The big question, then: who will support Pogacar in July? Isaac del Toro, currently racing the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, is expected to be the key super-domestique. Tim Wellens and Florian Vermeersch are earmarked as the team's big engine men. Brandon McNulty is also on the provisional list, though Yates and Soler are technically still listed too.

"This season is demanding, but I believe we will arrive at the Tour with the strongest team," Hauptman said. "We still have to wait and see how the recovery of some riders progresses, and we will wait until the last moment to choose those who are truly best prepared." CyclingUpToDate.comCyclingUpToDate.com

That suggests last-minute decisions will be made in at least a handful of cases. Perhaps Yates will make it after all — or perhaps other riders will make a late push to force their way into the squad in the final weeks before the race.

For now, the one certainty at UAE is Pogacar himself. According to Hauptman, the world champion is in excellent condition following his altitude camp in Sierra Nevada. From 17 to 21 June he will put the finishing touches on his preparation at the Tour de Suisse — a race he has never previously entered or won.

After Switzerland, there will be one final altitude boost before Pogacar heads to Barcelona, where the Tour de France gets under way on 4 July. "Tadej is on the right track for the Tour de France. The Tour of Switzerland is an important benchmark for our preparations, and for whether we can still change anything or fine-tune details in the final week before the race," Hauptman said. IDLprocycling.com

At UAE Emirates-XRG, they are already keeping an eye on the opposition. “For Paul Seixas, it will be his first three-week race, and he will be the same age as Tadej Pogačar was in 2019, when he made his debut in Spain. Seixas showed last year and this year what kind of challenges he can take on. He will certainly play an important role.”

“And not only he and Vingegaard, but Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe also have two riders who can fight for a place near the top of the general classification, and there are a few other teams with exceptionally strong leaders,” the Slovenian added. “Not only Slovenians, but all cycling fans around the world will be very happy to follow these exceptional riders of the new era, such as Tadej, Remco Evenepoel, Mathieu van der Poel...”

Author: David Bavin-Hobbs - [email protected]