Tadej Pogačar’s agent, Alex Carera, said that although he didn’t race La Vuelta this year, he does plan to soon—and to win.
After winning the Giro-Tour double, the Slovenian star is not competing in La Vuelta this year, unlike his first professional season in 2019. Initially, there was speculation he might ride it this year. Although other cyclists have won more than one Grand Tour in the same year, no one in men’s cycling has ever won all three in the same year. Pogačar could have broken that record if he had raced La Vuelta in September. However, the Team UAE Emirates boss said that would be unwise.
Three Grand Tours in a year?
“I’m not sending him. It would be too much stress to attempt a third Grand Tour with the goal of victory,” Mauro Gianetti told Tuttobiciweb before the start. “Sure, if he won, it would be something unique, but I also have to think about his future. I don’t want to risk burning him out. And if I push him too hard? You know, if he were to win, we’d be criticized for being greedy. If it goes badly, we’d face a lot of criticism.”
Carera, who started working with Pogačar before he turned professional with Team UAE Emirates, said he has a good feeling about his participation in the Spanish Grand Tour. “Look, I never interfere with career decisions; that’s up to the team,” he said in an interview with Revelo. “But Tadej sometimes asks for my opinion on things, and I can tell you that each year he sets a new goal, a different challenge.”
Always looking for new challenges
Two seasons ago, that challenge was the Tour of Flanders; in 2024, it was the Giro d’Italia, he said. “And I know that he wants to return to two races he has his sights set on. One is the Tour Down Under, because he raced it once and didn’t win, coming very close to the Top 10 [it was his first race as a professional], and the other is La Vuelta a España.”
In terms of timing, the Italian says it will be quite soon. “I’m sure he will be at La Vuelta in 2025 or 2026,” Carera said. “His dream is to win all the races on the calendar. I’m certain that he will return to La Vuelta, but it will be something he decides with his team and close circle. Right now, I’d say there’s a 50 per cent chance of seeing him here next year.”
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