(Florence) “Rock stars”, “a monstrous team”, “it’s Real Madrid”: the UAE team arrives at the Tour de France with an impressive troop of “Galactics” which, given the aura of its leader Tadej Pogacar, seems immune from a war of egos.
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 to achieve a Giro-Tour double unseen 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 compared to the squad that accompanied Pogacar on the Giro, a “monstrous team », According to Tour director Christian Prudhomme.
The Tour de Suisse, the last major preparation race, provided an illustration of the striking force of the UAE. Yates and Almeida made it 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 before in 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.
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 is a multi-stage rocket where each person plays a well-defined role. On the plains, Politt and Wellens are capable of wringing everyone out. In the mountains Sivakov and Soler are ideal launching pads. And there is still Aysuo, the young Spanish prodigy who finished third in the Vuelta in 2022 at the age of 19, Almeida, third in the Giro in 2023, and Yates, third in the Tour last year.
“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 place himself without qualms in the service of his leader.
In the past, many teams have been rocked by internal rivalries like Ineos in 2023 and even Visma had a turbulent final Vuelta when Sepp Kuss slipped past Vingegaard and Primoz Roglic.
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 his role.
Pogacar’s obvious supremacy and his generous personality contribute to establishing a natural hierarchy.
“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 am 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.
“Of course we are gregarious, but when it is for a big leader like Pogacar it can give opportunities, like for example Adam (Yates) last year who took the yellow jersey from the first day. The UAE way of racing is quite open and gives chances to everyone. »
Tactically, this profusion opens up interesting prospects for harassing and exhausting the other leaders, while Almeida, 25 years old, and especially Ayuso know that the future belongs to them, they who are only competing in their first Tour.
“We spent a lot of time together training as a group at altitude (at Isola 2000), underlines Pogacar. Now we just can’t wait to get it started and fight for the win and put on a good show. »
