"No one contradicts him" - Ten Dam warns of Pogacar's power at UAE

Laurens ten Dam has entered the debate surrounding UAE Team Emirates – XRG, a squad dominating the 2025 Vuelta a España but mired in internal drama. The team has already won five of the opening twelve stages, with Juan Ayuso taking two of those victories, yet their success has been overshadowed by Ayuso’s impending departure and public tensions between rider and team.

On his Live Slow, Ride Fast podcast, the Dutch coach drew on the lessons of elite sport to frame the situation. "No one should be bigger than the team," he said. "There's that book about the All Blacks by James Kerr: Onverslagbaar in Dutch, Legacy in English."

Ten Dam compared UAE’s current struggles with the culture of New Zealand’s rugby legends. "That's the team culture there, because if someone is bigger than the team, you're bound to get into trouble. And I think that's what's happening now at UAE," he explained.

He suggested that dynamics inside the squad are skewed, with Tadej Pogacar increasingly central. "Apparently, he can say from altitude training that Del Toro is the leader, and no one contradicts him. Or he laughs with his teammates when Ayuso rides 50 meters ahead of the group at training camp because they want to reach their wattage."

The atmosphere, ten Dam argued, leaves little room for dissent. "Everyone in the team thinks: I'm going to support Pogi, because if I don't, I won't be racing anymore. No one in the team is going to say to Pogi: 'Well, Tadej, it's not very nice to say on Instagram that Del Toro is the leader.' A team manager isn't going to say that either. Pogi is becoming bigger than UAE, and that's a recipe for disaster."

Ten Dam drew a parallel with events at Jumbo-Visma during the 2023 Vuelta. "Roglic had helped build the team; he was the driving force behind its success, but Kuss rode himself into the red, and the agreement was to go for him."