Joxean Matxin does not grade Pogacar & UAE's 2024 an A despite vast success: "That would be if you had achieved excellence and perfection. And we haven't achieved that yet"
Cycling
Tadej Pogacar had arguably the greatest individual season of any rider in the history of the sport in 2024. UAE Team Emirates boss Joxean Matxin is seemingly a hard man to please though, with the Spaniard refusing to grade 2024 as an A, insisting the Slovenian and his teammates have room to improve.
"I would give our season a B+," Matxin remarkably tells Eurosport, slightly harsh with his grading system. "You can't give this season an A. That would be if you had achieved excellence and perfection. And we haven't achieved that yet," he adds in explanation.
In total, UAE Team Emirates took 81 victories across the 2024 season, with not only Pogacar, but the likes of Marc Hirschi, Joao Almeida, Adam Yates, Tim Wellens and Juan Ayuso among others all taking notable victories. Using Jumbo-Visma in 2023 as a reference point though, Matxin isn't fully content with his side's vast successes over the last twelve months.
"Win the Giro, Tour and Vuelta," Matxin says when asked how things could be improved further in 2025. "We have great riders, so why shouldn't we be able to fight for the Vuelta? We brought great riders to us, but we still didn't make it. If we win 81 races, we want 82. If we are the best team in the world, we want to be that again. If we win with 20 different drivers, we want to win with 21 different drivers. We always want to improve."
One thing unlikely to change though, is the fact that Pogacar is set to continue leading the UAE Team Emirates charge. "I think Tadej is a gift for everyone who loves cycling. All of us who are living in this moment will look back in a few years and say: 'I experienced it and saw Tadej Pogacar win,'" concludes the 53-year-old Spaniard.
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🌈 What happened in 2024 was incredible. Not content with the Giro d’Italia and the Tour de France, @TamauPogi claimed the rainbow jersey for the first time.
— @UAE-TeamEmirates (@TeamEmiratesUAE) December 12, 2024
For 2025, Tadej will hit the roads with a new white hybrid skinsuit, handmade in PISSEI’s Custom Lab. #WeAreUAE 🇦🇪 pic.twitter.com/jfLRlMTwya
Kieran WoodDeputy Editor-in-Chief
Kieran Wood is a sports journalist based in Wales and has been active in journalism since 2022. He regularly contributes to DartsNews.com and CyclingUpToDate.com, where he covers professional cycling and darts. In cycling, his work includes liveblogs from major races, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España, alongside race reports and analysis. He has also conducted interviews with professional riders.
His reporting spans the full racing calendar, from one-day classics to stage races, with a focus on accurate, real-time coverage and clear contextual analysis. For statistics, results, and historical context, he regularly uses resources such as ProCyclingStats. To support reporting on rider activity and training context where relevant, he also references Strava.
In his work, Kieran places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles as new, verified information becomes available.
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- many people advise him to grow slowly and rather do giro and/or vuelta instead of tdf. but i can totally understand that he is not satisfied with taking over once pogi declines, but instead beat him in his prime. so if he goes for tdf again, i‘m all for it. let‘s hope that pogi recovers soon!Ketterechts07-11-2026
- So gracious to offer something no-one would be prepared to pay for. The Giro is not the Tour and doesn’t command the same interest or attract the same “elite” (those willing to pay to be a part of something they consider has ego boosting potential). Roadside viewing will always largely remain free for everyone outside circuits. Introduction of a symbolic entrance to mountain climbs is worthy of exploration. Asking 1-2€ isn’t going to repulse real fans (most will spend 50-100€ on their outing that day all things included) but will prevent a portion of the total knobhead thrillseekers who will join in any large gathering as long as it’s free, just because they’re attracted to crowds, without which it it difficult for them to work up their anti-social behaviour.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- How is radio going to help when someone went over a cliff or bridge or off the roadside into a forest unnoticed and is laying there unconscious?Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- Yep, next we’ll be accusing F1 drivers of avoiding Le Mans.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- But on what is that opinion based? Are you holding him to a different standard than others? Are you saying he should do learn to like something he doesn’t Are you saying he hasn’t achieved enough Are you saying he pretends to be better than his results? It’s actually a really strange opinion to oust if you consider it objectively or rationally. Try applying it to others or yourself by asking if not EVERYONE should then be doing more? Nobody in athletics or swimming gets criticism for not expanding their repertoire when a rival or someone else does. In fact, most who move to another event get accused of running from their rival. Opinions are boring, the reasons behind them are what count.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- for a medical chief to throw things like is just bad. There are already radios which were banned for spectacle. allow radios. Gps trackers are not a complete solutionabstractengineer07-11-2026
- Yeah man...PogiSloFans07-11-2026
- any rider less than 25 whether they are really ready for the position of leadership of GT is probably not the case. I think Pogi himself suffered when he was defeated by Jonas in the TDF twice. But that would be the team's job to ensure support so that they can bounce back. It requires a team and time to get back up and win after getting knocked down.abstractengineer07-11-2026
- I'm very glad he got the big late Quickstep Vuelta win and I hope he has a few left for Euskaltel-Euskadi.flyer07-11-2026
- My memories of Ivan Basso aren't good but I liked his sister Elisa ok.flyer07-11-2026
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