Tour de France: “Rock stars”, “a monstrous team”, “it’s Real Madrid”, the UAE team ready to help Pogacar win

Adam Yates, Joao Almeida, mais aussi Marc Soler ou encore Juan Ayuso seront au service de Tadej Pogacar. – MAXPPP

L’équipe UAE débarque sur le Tour de France avec une troupe de “Galactiques” impressionnante qui, vu l’aura de son leader Tadej Pogacar, semble à l’abri d’une guerre d’égos.

No matter which way you look at it, the selection of the Emirati team is dizzying. To support the Slovenian, launched into a formidable challenge of achieving a Giro-Tour double not seen since 1998, she is fielding seven riders who could all have been leaders in many teams.

Nils Politt, Tim Wellens, Pavel Sivakov, Marc Soler, Juan Ayuso, Joao Almeida and Adam Yates: it’s a Dream Team, 100% renewed in relation to the squad that accompanied Pogacar on the Giro, a «monstrous team», according to Tour director Christian Prudhomme.

Also read: Cycling: imperial and untouchable at the Giro, will Tadej Pogacar also crush the competition at the Tour de France ?

The Tour de Suisse, the last major preparation race, provided an illustration of the striking force of the UAE. Yates and Almeida went one and two in the general classification after finishing the last four stages in the first two places to share two victories each.
«We have never seen such a strong line-up on the Tour de France. I don't think much could happen to them. It’s Real Madrid,” observes Vincent Lavenu, manager of the Decathlon-AG2R La Mondiale team.

Multi-stage rocket

For Pogacar, it’s a real change. After having suffered the yoke of Jonas Vingegaard's overpowering Visma for the last two years, the Slovenian finds himself for the first time with the strongest team in the peloton, by far.
It’s a multi-stage rocket where each person plays a well-defined role. On the plains, Politt and Wellens are capable of wringing out everyone.

In the mountains, Sivakov and Soler are ideal launch pads. And there are still Aysuo, the young Spanish prodigy who finished third in the 2022 Vuelta at the age of 19, Almeida, third in the 2023 Giro, and Yates, third in last year's Tour.

“My role will be the same as last year: to be Tadej's last teammate in the mountains before he attacks. And he knows that if he needs anything else, we will be there”, explains the Briton who says he is ready to put himself at the service of his leader without any qualms.

In the past, many teams have been shaken by internal rivalries like Ineos in 2023 and even Visma had a turbulent last Vuelta when Sepp Kuss got ahead of Vingegaard and Primoz Roglic.

"Easy to run with Pogacar"

At UAE, we assure you that things will go well. "We have a team of rockstars, it’s true, but everyone knows that Tadej is the leader", insists manager Joxean Matxin Fernandez who recalls that the selection was announced in December, giving everyone time to integrate their role.

Pogacar's obvious supremacy and his generous personality contribute to establishing a natural hierarchy.
"I’I raced with him at the Tour of Catalonia this year and it’was great, there was a good atmosphere, no pressure, really relaxed, reports Pavel Sivakov. It's easy to run with Pogacar because we know that he will almost always be there, so it's a big motivation to get the job done. I'm proud to be part of a team like that."

For the Frenchman, who could have aspired to a leadership role after the end of his contract at Ineos, putting himself at the service of another also has its advantages.

Also read: Cycling: Pogacar, on the way to a fabulous Giro-Tour de France double, which can prevent him ?

"Of course we are gregario but when it’s for a big leader like Pogacar it can give opportunities, like for example Adam (Yates) l& ;rsquo;last year who took the yellow jersey from day one. The UAE way of racing is quite open and gives chances to everyone."

Tactically, this profusion opens up interesting perspectives for harassing and exhausting the other leaders, while Almeida, 25 years old, and especially Ayuso know that the future belongs to them, they who do not argue as their first Tour.
"We spent a lot of time together training as a group at altitude (at Isola 2000), Pogacar emphasizes. Now we just can't wait to get it started and fight for the win and put on a good show."