"He does not have a weakness": Matxin warns rivals as Pogacar prepares for 2026 debut

UAE Team Emirates - XRG has launched into the 2026 season with a level of dominance that suggests they have no intention of giving up their spot at the top of the cycling world. With twelve victories already in the bag before mid-February, the machine is humming. However, the scariest prospect for the rest of the peloton is not what has already happened, but who is yet to arrive. As Tadej Pogacar gears up for his season debut, team manager Joxean Matxin has issued a stark warning: the best is getting better.

While the team has enjoyed a record-breaking start - doubling their win count compared to this time last year - the focus remains firmly on the best rider in the world, who is set to pin on a race number for the first time this year at Strade Bianche on March 7.

For Matxin, the challenge with Pogacar is no longer about developing his physical engine, but rather managing his unique capacity to win everywhere. "He is perhaps the most versatile rider I have seen in my life," Matxin stated in an interview to Marca. "One of the few who can start all five Monuments as a favourite and still dominate completely different races."

"His age is helping him progress in every aspect," Matxín added. "That maturity and experience make him better, help him understand himself better, train better and manage his efforts better. From my point of view, this year he will have even a little more progression."

Balancing a season that targets both the cobbled classics and the high mountains of the Tour de France is an impossible challenge for most, but for Pogacar, it is simply business as usual. Matxin insists that physically, the transition is less dramatic than people think.

"His weight does not vary much," he explained. "In summer he looks more defined because of racing rhythm and the heat, but his body composition is very stable. With someone like Tadej, you do not worry about half a kilo at the beginning of the year."

When pressed on whether the World Champion has any weaknesses in his armor that rivals could exploit, Matxin was blunt. "He does not have one," he said regarding. "And if he did, I would not tell you so his rivals could study it."

Beyond Pogacar, the spotlight falls on the Mexican prodigy, Isaac del Toro. After a spectacular 2025 in which he got 16 victories, he is set to make his Tour de France debut this July. "It is clear that it is his first participation, but it is also good that he races with the spotlights on Tadej," Matxín explained regarding the pressure. "That is going to be really good for Isaac because he is going to learn from the rider with the most experience. He is learning from the best."

Matxín dismissed the idea that managing a young talent like Del Toro is difficult. "It is difficult when you cannot win... but when a rider is young and a winner, it is really very easy. He has a huge heart, is polite, grateful and respectful."

The manager also addressed the high-profile exit of Juan Ayuso. Matxín insisted that the separation was amicable and necessary for both sides. "I consider that it was an ideal decision for all three parties and we all agreed."

Meanwhile, the team is sweating on the fitness of Jhonatan Narváez. The Ecuadorian suffered broken vertebrae in a crash at the Tour Down Under, ruling him out of the cobbled classics. Matxín remains hopeful for a return at the Giro d'Italia.

"I am so 'optimist-pessimist' that, within the optimism, I consider that he will be at the Giro d'Italia," Matxín said. "A rider who crashes and breaks vertebrae cannot compete in the cobbled classics... leaving that aside, let's focus on if he can make it to the Giro."