Tadej Pogacar will not start in the Vuelta a España next month. The number two of the Tour de France chooses a different route, which means that he participates in the World Cup, among other things.
At the beginning of this year, it was announced that Pogacar would ride two major rounds in one year for the first time in his career: the Tour and the Vuelta. The Slovenian of UAE Team Emirates closed the Tour in second on Sunday, behind winner Jonas Vingegaard.
In his new program, Pogacar focuses on a number of one-day races, including next Saturday’s Clásica San Sebastián. After his participation in the road race at the World Championships in Australia (September 30), the 23-year-old rider will focus on the Tour of Lombardy, which will be held on October 8.
His choice to skip the Vuelta means that Pogacar will not be seen in the Netherlands. The Tour of Spain starts on August 19 in Utrecht, after which the second and third stage will also be held on Dutch soil.
Pogacar surprisingly lost the battle for the yellow jersey in the Tour to Vingegaard. He showed his top form in the run-up to the largest cycling race in the world and started well, but gradually turned out to be inferior to his Danish competitor Jumbo-Visma.
This put an end to Pogacar’s reign in the Tour. In 2020 and 2021 he did bring the yellow jersey to Paris. This time he ‘only’ secured the white jersey as the best youngster.
Remaining program Pogacar
- July 30: Clásica San Sebastian
- August 28: GP Plouay
- September 9: Quebec GP
- September 11: Montreal GP
- September 25: World Cycling Championships
- October 1: Giro Dell’Emilia
- October 4: Tre Valli Varesine
- October 8: Tour of Lombardy