World Champion starts season on home soil

News | Team – 11th February 2025

With five victories on the board already this season, UAE Team Emirates-XRG have named their seven riders for the first major objective of the year: the UAE Tour. The Emirati team go into the race with one of the strong favourites through World Champion Tadej Pogačar. The reigning Tour de France champion returns to the race after a two-year absence, having won the title in both 2021 and 2022.

This year’s race will run from 17-23 February and will feature seven days racing including four flat stages, two mountain stages and an individual time trial. The key stages are set to be the stage 2 time trial at Al Hudayriyat Island (12.2km) followed by the first mountain test on stage 3 to Jebel Jais and the iconic final stage finish at Jebel Hafeet.

The team goes into the race with a balanced squad, with key focus on Tadej Pogačar as leader for the GC and sprinter Sebastian Molano also hoping to take his first win of the year in the sprint stages.

Pogačar: “I’m really excited and motivated to start the season. Luckily, I can say that I had a pretty smooth preparation for this first part of the season and I’m feeling good and ready to go. It’s been a few years now since I’ve raced UAE Tour, and I must say I’m looking forward to it.

I’m confident to lead the team and I will have strong support around me, both from my teammates and from all the support we get from the fans in UAE whenever we race there. The important thing is we put a good show and really push to win the title in the home race.

Usually, the key stages will be the time trial and then the two mountain finishes at Jebel Jais and Jebel Hafeet but if we get wind on the flat days, it can also play a factor, so we need to be ready for anything. I think from a spectators’ point of view it will be a really nice race and I can’t wait to start.”

Sports Manager Matxin Fernandez (Spa) along with Sports Directors Andrej Hauptman (Slo) and Yousif Mirza (UAE) will lead the following riders:

UAE Tour [2.UWT] – 17-Feb-2025 / 23-Feb-2025

Mikkel Bjerg (Den)

Rune Herregodts (Bel)

Sebastian Molano (Col)

Domen Novak (Slo)

Tadej Pogačar (Slo)

Florian Vermeersch (Bel)

Jay Vine (Aus)

Matxin Fernandez (Sports Manager): “ It’s no secret that this race is one of our key objectives of the year. The aim will be quite clear: to try and take the title which has eluded us the past two years.

We’re on home soil and we know that all eyes will be on us but it’s something we’ll use as further motivation in the race. Pogačar will be our clear leader, and we hope for a strong team performance in the TT and for Molano in the sprints. Every stage is very important in this race.