"I can be an 'armchair expert' now too" - Pogacar on following races from the sidelines, injury recovery and 2027 plans
Cycling
Tadej Pogacar was at the 2026 European Championships, but not as a racer. The Slovenian was able to watch the race in a different light from what he usually does; and has provided an update on his recovery and even 2027 season plans.
"Things are pretty good now; I can ride my bike, but on the other hand, the season is over for me, and I can't race anymore," Pogacar said to the Slovenian media at the European Championships, as reported by 24UR.
"It’s nice to finally watch races on TV. I can be an 'armchair expert' now too. Of course, you miss racing and feel that urge to get back out there, but it’s nice to follow the races in a different way".
There was an attempt from the former World Champion to race this week in Slovenia, as the event was highly influenced by the UAE Team Emirates - XRG rider - even riding by his hometown of Komenda, close to the capital of Ljubljana.
But ultimately, a return to competition was not possible. After having suffered a fractured collarbone, vertebra and concussion at the Vuelta a España, there was no time to build form once again after recovering from them.
The Slovenian, back on the road now, assures that he has recovered in the meantime. "So, I’ve taken some time for myself and am already slowly looking ahead to 2027".
He reveals an interesting detail: "I might be able to rest a bit longer, but that means I’ll have to start working sooner, a month earlier in fact". This could mean that next season Pogacar will also resume his racing schedule earlier.
Pogacar's recovery after Vuelta crash
The Tour de France champion's injuries were difficult to recover from, just a month after his crash.
"The first two weeks were pretty brutal; there weren't many good days. Things improved in the third week, once I started moving again, got on the turbo trainer, and began physiotherapy. Now, everything is back to normal," he confirms.
Pogacar could on paper resume racing still this fall with two weeks left of the calendar, but his fitness is far from competitive, and would likely not lead to any meaningful result.
"I can ride my bike outdoors for a week and realize that my form is quite poor. That is why I had absolutely no desire to race in the European Championship. Yet two weeks ago, I really wanted to be at the start line".
Pogacar pays tribute to Luka Mezgec
In Ljubljana and Sencur, there was one rider who had more eyes on him than usual: Luka Mezgec. The Slovenian rider has retired following this Sunday's race, someone who was important for Pogacar throughout his career.
"Luka's victory in Trieste (at the 2014 Giro d'Italia, ed.) is certainly a great memory. One of my major memories is of the 2019 Vuelta a España, there weren't many Slovenians there at the time, and we spent a lot of time chatting at the back of the pack during some of the stages".
"We were also teammates on the national squad for almost every European and World Championship. I learned a great deal from him and his extraordinary career".
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Pogacar was able to spend time in his home country without the pressure and schedules that typically surround him in the cycling world, and was able to enjoy his time with his friend and compatriot who has ended his career 14 seasons in the World Tour.
"It’s truly wonderful, but it also means he won't be in the peloton anymore—there won't be that person you could talk and joke with during long stages. His career was truly outstanding, as evidenced by this huge crowd. You can see he achieved something special, and I’m happy to be here with him," he concluded.
Rúben SilvaEditor-in-Chief
A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
Beyond editorial work, he has been closely involved in the expansion and coordination of CyclingUpToDate’s wider network, helping establish and support sister platforms across multiple languages. This includes ongoing collaboration with CiclismoAlDia (Spanish), CiclismoAtual (Portuguese), WielrennenUpToDate (Dutch), and RadsportAktuell (German), contributing to a shared editorial vision and consistent international coverage.
He also helps oversee editorial governance across the network, setting standards for accuracy and consistency and coordinating updates or corrections when needed.
Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
Within 18 months of launch, he helped grow CyclingUpToDate’s English-language platform into one of the most-read cycling news websites, built entirely from the ground up. As both a professional journalist and lifelong cycling enthusiast, his focus remains on delivering accurate, timely, and well-contextualized coverage.
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- The Festina Affair, Operación Puerto, Eufemiano Fuentes, Michele Ferrari, Armstrong, Contador, Landis, Ullrich, and Pantani were all great shows. Now Pogačar, "The Greatest Showman" of all.
vannpelt05-10-2026 - People are loosing it over UAE how dominant they are. First they create the best rider ever, now other teams captains cant even deal with their domestiques. Del Toro pogs dom better than evenepoel at every hilly course in the world..Its crazy work that team. That McNulty also won WC just goes to show how insane they are. Their the best in history its very clear aswell wether or not i dont like em ive never seen anything remotely close to them. Think ppl better off just accepting facts instead of delusional alternative realities. Touch grass, get a job and enjoy the show instead.miguel05-10-2026
- PogiSloFans, it is just a possibility with the unfortunate reality that Pog is having to face. He can't yet know how he will react to more intense training with his concussion; and that has consequences for the rest of someone's life.Hills3305-10-2026
- Those are your prerogatives but just like you’ve disqualified me (and yet continue to engage), I disqualified her as interesting to me for having done what for me is unacceptable in her position (different e.g. to someone put in a position to feel they have no choice, so unless I discover something in the media about her having been blackmailed by her agent or employer I will stick to my position). I am also not interested in researching good things Hitler might have done or any talents he had as these claims rarely come from a source I could have respect for. Sorry to use an extreme to make a point but maybe you get it better put like that. Extremism/radicalism in any form can be acceptable or ok on an individual level (when it has no effect on outsiders) but NOT societally.Mistermaumau05-10-2026
- Pretty unclear what you are saying here, especially bringing skin colour into it for no apparent reason, but you do bring up an interesting issue although only from one point of view (father, not mother). So I ask you to think through this. I expect you’d be proud of your daughter/wife/sister if she’d tell you shéd made it « big » (obviously not if comparing to those with 1000s of x higher worth) financially (not a risky assumption based on the importance you’ve shown money has for you). Would you still be as proud to discover it was through showing herself naked publicly, for a betting company to attract male users easier? I expect many fathers (not averse to looking at naked females) will have a slightly different view on this than mothers but that this difference might drop when it concerns one of their own. Now, maybe in today’s morally confused and paradoxical society this might still be considered acceptable by some (let’s also not forget sole form of incest happens in 15-20% of families to remember how many weird men (and to a lesser degree women) there are, so in order for you to think this through properly and not through the societal pressure to conform to contemporary « normality « you might feel under lets skip the next message by directly considering the same question in the context of historical momentum. Would you have given the same answer in your grandparents’ time? Do you see how things have evolved since (regardless of whether we call that progress or not) even if it’s never linear (70’s being far less prudish than a few subsequent , depending on which generation you asked obviously). Now, fast forward another decade or generation or more of the same momentum and consider yourself a father when every young girl will see a financial opportunity to make it big through platforms like Onlyfans, Discord, Coco (and probably hundreds more unknown to mainstream media, worse even), you’d still be happy to defend your child for her choices, behaviour and the example she sets for others? Girls like this are just germinating and facilitating new Epsteins by lowering the barrier for (female, surprise, surprise) nudity.Mistermaumau05-10-2026
- Hey Jumpin Johnny, it would also be nice for you to keep your foolish mouth shut every once in a while. You're almost as bad as that Trump redneck, frieder3.PogiSloFans05-10-2026
- WTF? Retirement? We still have plenty of enjoyment ahead of us with his victories.MajorPayne05-10-2026
- WTF are you talking about? What retirement? Next year Pogi will be better then ever... his goal is to prove that, to show te whole world who is the "boss"!!! Capish?PogiSloFans05-10-2026
- Fair play, doing every level in RR and ITT is quite a feat.wrsty05-10-2026
- You must have missed yesterdays and todays Italian races where UAE 'subs' didn't win!frieders305-10-2026
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