Joxean Matxín makes it clear that in 2024 UAE wants to win a Grand Tour again: "This team was born to win"
Cycling
UAE Team Emirates, after an exceptional 2023 year but without a Grand Tour victory, is determinedly ready for the challenge ahead in the 2024 cycling season. With 57 victories and the title of best team in the UCI classification under its belt, the Emirati team led by Joxean Matxin has a clear goal: to conquer at least one of the coveted three Grand Tours.
Despite its dominance in multiple cycling events, the absence at the top of the podium in major competitions has been a boost for this ambitious team. "This is a team born to win," Matxin stated in an exclusive interview with La Nucía TV. "For next year, we are looking to maintain our position as the best team in the world, expand our list of victories and, above all, lift the trophy in a Grand Tour, something we unfortunately didn't achieve last season, despite taking a few podiums."
At the heart of this quest for success are two key riders: Tadej Pogacar and Juan Ayuso. Pogacar, demonstrating his power in previous races, remains a strong contender for a Grand Tour victory. On the other hand, Ayuso, despite facing challenges last year, has shown his resilience and skills, competing on equal terms with the best riders in the world, as he demonstrated in the Vuelta a España.
The team is currently in training camp in La Nucia, Spain, preparing for the start of the season. Their initial calendar includes a series of races on the Iberian peninsula and beyond. From the Clásica Comunitat Valenciana to events in Castellón, Mallorca and further afield in the United Arab Emirates, UAE Team Emirates is focused on meticulous preparation to ensure an impactful performance from day one.
"We will be present at key races such as the AlUla Tour and the Tour of Oman, crucial events that are not only important for the team, but also for our valuable sponsors," Matxin added, outlining the strategy for the start of the season.
With a blend of experience and youth, renewed determination and rigorous preparation, UAE Team Emirates is ready to rise to the challenge and fight for glory in the 2024 Grand Tours. Excitement and uncertainty intertwine in the cycling world as the team embarks on this new season, tirelessly pursuing its dream of being crowned the ultimate champions.
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.
claps 1visitors 1
Just in
Popular news
Latest comments
- He is boring
leedorney08-11-2026 - To Twoje przemyślenia te bla, bla :)
Dariusz08-11-2026 - Uwielbiam patrzeć, jak wyjeżdża na czoło peletonu i zaczyna się rzeź...Dariusz08-11-2026
- Yeah, unreal.
parisbound0008-11-2026 - there needs to be space in life for pointless comments!Ketterechts08-11-2026
- That is a very lazy way of putting it but so far on this website it seems like everyone is happy to look at everything lazily, even things that annoy them intensely. All they want to do is state their feeling and position but ask most to analyse a problem or come up with solutions or improvements and you’re stunned by silence. Nobody even really knows how this all happens. It’s very simple and quick to just say the UCI did it but I bet you they didn’t, I bet you not more than 2 people were involved, more likely just 1. The UCI may be ultimately responsible but it is not their decision, this is about hierarchy, power and delegation. The fact that protest is possible also means it isn’t over and that MORE people could get involved for a thorough review which could throw up anything. It is highly likely it was a sole commissar who decided and has that power in a first round. Therein might lie the problem the UCI has to consider, is it acceptable to give so much authority to one single person when it is quite possible for them to have a natural bias or be too easily susceptible to imposed bias. Who is to say an individual in this position isn’t susceptible to collaboration with outside players with interests in the results, nations, families, teams, betting companies, etc. On the one hand we have sports where these problems have been worked on way more to reduce such problems, on the other hand we have sports with far stricter and more draconian rules not even concerning safety or obstruction that nobody really questions like false starts or stepping out of lane or zones in athletics. If cycling hastowork on itself, it would be good if protagonists (all kinds) would start doing a little more than just moaning over outcomes.Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- Yes, so why not make comments less pointless?Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- What a race! I didn't expect Vanthourenhout to collapse like that, and Wyseure did take the fight to Nys, but there was no doubt at the end. I also wonder what Aubin Sparfel would be capable of were he to race in the elites now. In the U23 ranks he is making good work of Giel Lejeune, who himself is among the better riders in the elites, and a top 10 contender in the big races (3rd at Kleebergcross, 8th at Berencross and 5th at Heerderstrand). In the French Cup, Sparfel is significantly better than Romain Debord (8th at Koppenbergcross and 10th at the Euros) and Rémi Lelandais (12th at Koppenbergcross and 19th at the Euros).
Rafionain-Glas08-11-2026 - There really was nothing in it. Schreiber was so much faster, and Brand was fighting to stay in the wheel in the sprint. Schreiber did move a bit, but to say she closed the door doesn't make sense because Brand couldn't enter it anyway, abd she wasn't impeded.Rafionain-Glas08-11-2026
- He should have been allowed to go to Movistar. Right now both arent a good fit for each other and are just wasting each other's time and effortabstractengineer08-11-2026
Loading
'Matxín', director deportivo del UAE, con @josuelena: 🗣️ "La sonrisa no la perdemos nunca. Otra cosa es que hayamos perdido el Tour" 🗣️ "Ayer fui a la habitación de Pogacar y le di un beso. Le dije que en este momento es cuando más lo queremos" #TDF2023 #TourRTVE20J
Write a comment