"I couldn't believe he had done it" - Tadej Pogacar on new World Champion McNulty, return to training and 2031 goals
Cycling
From this weekend onwards, Tadej Pogacar will no longer be reigning World or European Champion. Back in Slovenia and riding on home roads, the UAE Team Emirates - XRG rider has discussed his future and his teammate Brandon McNulty's win at the World Championships.
Ljubljana, Slovenia. Over the coming week, the cycling world will have its eyes turned to the central European nation which has been home to Primoz Roglic and Tadej Pogacar.
Much due to the influence of the latter, Slovenia is hosting the European Championships - which will, in its elite road races, ride through his hometown of Komenda and finish nearby.
Pogacar has made it to Slovenia and his riding around the very same roads, but will not be competing in the event. During the Vuelta a España, the former World Champion suffered a concussion and fractured collarbone alongside a vertebra, which he could not recover in time from.
"I’m doing well; I’m getting better with every day after the crash. I’m riding the bike and enjoying the last nice autumn days here in Slovenia," the Slovenian said ahead of the event. Training in the area with his partner Urska Zigart, its been a relaxing few days as his health continues to improve.
"In the last few days she's been kicking my ass on the climbs and on the downhills too. I have to follow her now but we're having a good time on the bike together".
Tadej Pogacar abandoned the Vuelta a España after a crash on stage 8
Pogacar on Brandon McNulty
Whilst not what he would've desired, Pogacar is having an unusually agenda and pressure-free end of the season. He has spent the World Championships at home and, in his absence, could watch one of his teammates take the victory.
"Of course, I spoke with Brandon; at the World Championships I was rooting for a few people in the final of the race and one of them was Brandon," Pogacar admitted, having helped McNulty to victory on the same course 12 months prior at the GP de Montréal.
Nevertheless, he never would've expected such a win at the World Championships. "It was a beautiful, incredible race. When Brandon crossed the line and won I couldn't believe he had done it. I was so, so happy for him. We spoke the next day and it was a special moment."
Pogacar takes aim at 2031 'super' World Championships
Pogacar is recovering from his injuries and later on set his sights on the 2027 season. A record-breaking sixth Tour de France win and a maiden Paris-Roubaix victory should be his biggest goals.
But alongside that, the climber-focused World Championships course in Sallanches will be a perfect fit for his abilities. This upcoming year will be an edition of the 'super' World Championships, in which plenty disciplines of the sport host their worlds on the same venue.
With a contract now standing all the way until 2032, he will still be present to take part in the 2031 Trentin 'super Worlds'. "I’ll be 33 years old; I hope I'll be there and racing. It's my dream to still be good then".
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"I’m not getting any younger. For sure there are going to be many, many rivals for this World Championships that we don't even know yet.
Asked about that event in specific, it could come at a time in his career where his palmarès looks quite different than what is the case today. But in any case, he intends on fighting for the rainbow jersey that year.
"Every year is going to be harder but that doesn't matter. I'm looking forward to being there in 2031 for the super World Championships in Trentino. I'll give my best if I have the chance."
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)...
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- I think non of us believe it. Issue is that the world champs jersey will be seen as bottle carrier and i cannot see mcnulty leading as classic races or even winning stages. It will not show world champs jersey in a good light alas.paultryan200202-10-2026
- Where does it say that? That is your biased opinion which just goes to show how biased our general education towards such subjects is. Instead of commenting on the inaccuracies of the comment, why don’t you question the oversight, lack of detail or precision of the article? Why is women’s sport almost always systematically ignored in a non gendered article on sport?Jumpyjohn02-10-2026
- Assuming at some point (unlike the Horners and Gianettis who had their peaks after they should have retired) TP will tire out, it will be very interesting to see how UAE evolve. A demise like Sky maybe?Jumpyjohn02-10-2026
- You’re « back »?Jumpyjohn02-10-2026
- If they have such advanced training strategies no other team can match, how do they keep it secret, how do they deal with people getting paid to leak info or riders switching teams?.Jumpyjohn02-10-2026
- Best go check you’re not at the bottom of that list now Nils, friends is a very precarious term in some circles.Jumpyjohn02-10-2026
- Alternatively, just raise (or let it rise and pretend you’re powerless to stop it) the price of oil a bit more and turn him into a pacemaker ;-)Jumpyjohn02-10-2026
- They managed something the Dutch ladies never did but at least they were smart enough to stop trying ;-)Jumpyjohn02-10-2026
- Can you elaborate? I’ve always wondered what the exact or expected skills required of a sports director are and why there are so few candidates available that teams have to wait for riders to retire. Comparing with other sports, F1 teams are rarely directed by ex-pilots and in football, there’s usually quite a gap between playing and coaching top level teams.Jumpyjohn02-10-2026
- I kind of doubt he was going to spend his time ON the table and kudos to him for what he did BUT I thought the whole reason behind it was to pick up the easy points on offer, in which case he failed, no? In any case, he may not have raced since a while but judging by the result, he was obviously staying very active.Jumpyjohn02-10-2026
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