Could this be UAE's final transfer market signing? - Classics specialist reportedly close to joining Tadej Pogacar's squad in 2027
Cycling
UAE Team Emirates are reportedly in advanced talks to sign a French classics specialist from Decathlon CMA CGM, bolstering their support of Tadej Pogacar in one-day races next season and beyond.
Spanish publication MARCA reports that talks to sign Pierre Gautherat are in the advanced stages and that a three-year contract through to 2029 is lined up should confirmation come.
23-year-old Gautherat is already tried and tested in monument races such as Milano-Sanremo, Tour of Flanders and Paris Roubaix, and has shown an impressive engine and resilience chasing personal goals such as Paris-Cambembert and the 4 Jours de Dunkerque in 2025.
The report also indicates that UAE see him as an option to bolster their classics squad, easing the pressure on some riders usually prominent in Grand Tours. With Pogacar showing no signs of calming his relentless spring pursuits, the Frenchman could play a key role in those line-ups.
On paper, the move could be UAE's final signing for the 2027 season. Following the confirmation of deals to sign Marco Frigo, Abel Balderstone and Davide Stella, their officially contracted riders for 2027 stands at 25.
UAE's 2027 roster
Although not officially confirmed, reports indicate that the other four spots on the team after Gautherat's potential signing could be filled by the remaining riders currently with the team.
Those with no confirmed contracts for 2027 include: Ivo and Rui Oliveira, Julius Johansen, Igor Arrieta, Rune Herregodts, Juan Sebastian Molano, Pavel Sivakov, Vegard Stake Laengen. However, riders such as Sivakov, Arrieta, Molano and Herregodts have been heavily linked with transfers in recent months.
The news comes as Pogacar prepares to make history by winning the 2026 Vuelta a Espana. Already winning the Tour de France last month, Pogacar can make it a Grand Tour double this season and add the Spanish Tour to his 2024 Giro d'Italia win - completing the trilogy of overall victories over three weeks.
Tadej Pogacar rides the Vuelta a España 2026
Tadej Pogacar targets history and World Championships
Already equalling the record for Tour de France wins this summer, Pogacar can go into an official league of his own in 2027 if he was to take a sixth La Grand Boucle. After a dominant performance that saw him win comfortably after riding into yellow in just six stages, he will be the heavy favourite next July.
Meanwhile at La Vuelta, his main rivals come in the form of contenders such as Felix Gall, Richard Carapaz, Oscar Onley and Enric Mas in a Vuelta steeped in heavy climbing and finishing in Granada on September 13th.
Pogacar returns to the race for the first time since 2019 and hopes to combine the Vuelta with his ambitions to win a third World Championships in a row. The Elite Men's Road Race comes just two weeks after the curtain closes on the Spanish Grand Tour. Remco Evenepoel and Mathieu van der Poel are expected to be his big rivals in Montreal in his mission for the rainbow bands.
Gavin QuinnCycling Journalist
Gavin Quinn is a cycling journalist and ultra-distance cyclist with a BA in Journalism from Dublin City University. Formerly the Press & Communications Officer for Cycling Ireland, Gavin has worked inside the national team at the World Championships and has reported for the Irish Mirror, Mirror UK, and The42.
His expertise is backed by elite-level access, having interviewed stars like Sam Bennett and Ben Healy, as well as immense personal endurance. In 2025, he completed a 12,000km solo cycle from Ireland to Vietnam, following a 4,600km tour across Europe. From the cobbles of Paris-Roubaix to the gradients of the Tourmalet, Gavin’s writing focuses on the "romance and brutality" of the sport. Having visited 50+ countries, he brings a global, cultural perspective to his coverage of the pro peloton for CyclingUpToDate.
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- It’s off-season mate, I’m bored and fed up with the mediocrity of people unwilling to provoke change when they admit things aren’t right. What have you done lately to make anyone realise you won’t put up with things? What conversation, are you dictating to me which part of the incident I have to be interested in or telling me other parts are taboo? That’s what I guess the UCI would really like, let them moan, let it blow over for them pass on to the next thing, let’s keep the status quo, let’s try our best not reviewing or revealing anything about decision-making just like every time before, they’re used to it by now so we can take the risk they’ll never give us grief.Jumpyjohn09-11-2026
- As far as CUTD headlines go this is far from the worst. It helps if you look at it twice and realise it’s a list of descriptions from distinct events. You can’t deny the reality of being a rival if you consider the picture immediately below, frontrunner is unfortunate but I’m guessing this time it’s more a linguistic failure than a clickbaiting opportunity. Just a reminder that this is not an anglo website, for those who find it too tedious to interpret text to get the gist of things which are rarely of great importance (as opposed to eg purposely biaised DOJ extradition translations in order to achieve hidden agendas), there are plenty of anglo cycling websites google can suggest.Jumpyjohn09-11-2026
- Ah, finally someone willing to be a bit proactive.Jumpyjohn09-11-2026
- So? Do you understand the way instructions, decisions and authority work? Do you think in a football match if after a match (or even after play has gone on) a player tells the referee he did touch the ball with his hands when the referee didn’t award opponents a penalty that they will revise the score or force a replay? You really don’t get my point, it’s not against the rider but everyone here is so emotional for her they can’t get back to an issue which needs resolving for the future and the first step (or maybe second) is to try to understand how and why it happens, none of you have contributed in the least to that. All everyone is interested in is letting everyone know they agree how unjust it was, not even sure anyone thinks that could affect anything.Jumpyjohn09-11-2026
- Shouldn’t you be in MOUrning?Jumpyjohn09-11-2026
- Maybe you don’t like it and that’s fine, we all have different sensibilities and topics that touch us, but as you try to show me, it doesn’t hurt to reflect and compare ourselves to others behaving similarly. What precisely is the difference between a sports fan interested in every detail of his/her hero’s life and a celeb fan having the same hobby? It’s far more interesting to learn and think about how and why (which) people do things than reading about what they are actually doing. And just to add another level, maybe you’ll agree we don’t use the same value system for everyone, we discriminate in an enormous number of systematic ways. For example, when is the last time you saw a discussion arguing about the achievements of two politicians to compare or for that matter two business leaders apart from the comparison of hypothetical wealth accumulated? Perhaps you misunderstood the intention?Jumpyjohn09-11-2026
- I don’t think I know what’s beneath the surface but I am willing to think about it, discuss it, compare it to a known past, extrapolate to a potential future and ask/try to find out truth or even take action within my powers (boycotting something or someone is within EVERY person’s reach). If you think your attitude has more chance of changing a result, a process, a system or an institution or it just makes you feel good, keep at it but to me it looks like you’ve already given up before trying.Jumpyjohn09-11-2026
- All journalists should start asking the UCI uncomfortable questions, sending inquiries about the interpretation of the rules and the justification of the results. This is the only way to change anything.averagecyclist09-11-2026
- OFF TOPIC: OK, don't get mad with me... I have some very important news, something that can't be overlooked, something that can't be ignored!!! In the new documentary Anatomy of a G.O.A.T. (released in November 2026), legendary Belgian cyclist EDDY MERCKX spoke about TADEJ POGAČAR: Merckx: “He has revived a style of cycling that we had almost forgotten. He is now better than me.” Key statements by Merckx about Pogačar in 2026: - Acknowledging his superiority: This time, Merckx openly admitted, without any subsequent backtracking or reservations, that Pogačar had surpassed him and was now above him. This contrasts with 2024, when he quickly softened his remarks about Pogačar being faster. - The possibility of a historic triple (Giro, Tour and Vuelta): During the July Tour de France (where Pogi claimed his fifth title), Merckx stated that Pogi was the only cyclist in history capable of winning all three Grand Tours (the Giro d'Italia, Tour de France and Vuelta a España) in a single season, provided the conditions were right and he had sufficient team support. - Lack of serious competition: Merckx emphasised that Pogačar has no real rivals in the mountains since 2024, thanks to his extraordinary climbing ability and the fact that he continues to improve despite still being under 28 (he turned 28 in autumn 2026). - Praise for his racing style: Merckx highlighted how Pogačar is bringing back the aggressive, uncompromising spirit of cycling's golden era, when races were not merely about calculated stages and tactical conservatism, but about attacking from long distances. PS: Now, this is real important cycling news. This is not "boring" ... this is called making real history, not BS history. Capish?PogiSloFans09-11-2026
- how else is there to look at things? we are responding to words and pictures, we are not there. your long winded replies make zero sense to anyone. pretty much everyone but you says the same thing. MS was robbed. somehow you think you're so smart to dig beneath the surface and discover something no one else, including the opposing coach and cyclist, saw. lol. you are a tool.mij09-11-2026
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