Now that PCC voted for extra Grand Tour wildcards, will UCI verify the exception to rules? Final verdict on Monday!
Cycling
There is only a bit more than a month left until the Grande Partenza of Giro d'Italia, this year in Albania. Yet we still don't know which ProTeams will be at the start. Besides Israel - Premier Tech with its automatic invitation, there are still four serious candidates for the three available wildcards.
And since the situation is similar also over at the Tour de France and Vuelta a Espana, the request has been submitted by race organizers to allow for an extra wild card to be handed out this season, something that understandably wasn't met with appreciation of WorldTour teams.
The matter is more than pending and in order to get closer to final verdict, UCI's Professional Cycling Council (PCC) met on Wednesday to vote on whether this joint request should be granted. Most of the council members voted in favor. Next Monday, the UCI Management Committee will decide whether they will actually ratify the request.
The vote in the PCC was initiated by the AIOCC, the association of race organizers. Remarkably enough, the subject was supported by the AIGCP, the association of professional teams. This while the WorldTeams were jointly against the idea of extra wildcards.
It is said that the objections of the supporters were ignored by the AIGCP voting party. In the vote, twelve interest groups (six of which were UCI members) were allowed to choose whether or not to grant an extra wildcard to the organizations of major tours.
A majority of the PCC voted in favor. The UCI also announced in a press release that in addition to the AIOCC and AIGCP, the riders' representatives will also put this topic on the agenda. Next Monday, the UCI Management Committee (the highest body in cycling) will announce whether the request from the PCC will actually go ahead.
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Ondrej ZhasilCycling Journalist
Ondřej Zhasil is a cycling journalist at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2023. He is based in Ostrava, the third-largest city in the Czech Republic, and covers professional cycling across the main UCI competitions, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España. A key focus of his work is startlist analysis and pre-race coverage, where he examines team selections, rider line-ups, and tactical scenarios ahead of major events.
Alongside WorldTour coverage, Ondřej has developed specific expertise in junior cycling and in racing across East Asia, including competitions in China and Japan. He also maintains a broad working knowledge of other disciplines and levels, including cyclocross, while continuing to expand his understanding of mountain bike racing.
Ondřej holds a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and Physics, which supports his analytical, data-driven approach to performance and race analysis. In his reporting, he regularly uses ProCyclingStats for results, statistics, and historical context. He places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles promptly when new, verified information becomes available.
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- 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
- Thibau Nys does exactly what Iserbyt is calling for
Rafionain-Glas08-11-2026 - i did not see it. was the relegation justified or an overly hard decision? and don‘t cross riders deviate from straight lines all the time? bumping into each others when they cut corners, etc … why being more strict with the rules on the finish sprint?Ketterechts08-11-2026
- seems like we are advertising the website with pointless comments…Ketterechts08-11-2026
- So?Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- The UCI do have their favorites.
Front24208-11-2026 - On a positive note, you maybe notice turning this topic into a discussion has the benefit of eliminating certain participants who do not see how they can turn it back to their sole interest ;-)Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- People see what they want to. I am actually the opposite of your accusation, probably more of a rebel than most of you who don’t get the big picture. The difference is, I don’t go moaning publicly about the consequences of my transgressions, I understand the need for rules and I take my OWN responsibility when deciding to ignore or break them or doing so involuntarily. I will also not hesitate to state my case or argue vehemently when relevant, sometimes it works, sometimes it makes things worse but that’s the price to pay for principles and having character.Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- That may be but that was unknown to others and nothing says that’s the whole truth. Again, don’t try to misinterpret, it is a call and technically it is correct. Besides, even if there is a valid reason, that does not disqualify the ruling or punishment as far as the rules have been developed. I don’t think they’re as far as in football where for handball there is a distinction (in some ways and specific cases) between intentional or not. And football can be just as harsh and people live with it, eg the offside rule, also judged to within tiny fractions but often wrong or ignored. It’s the nature of every collective organisation and sometimes I wonder if our rebellion against it isn’t seated in the feelings we carry from the injustices we’ve felt personally, like being flashed driving 1km/h too fast when we are explained limits are just a security measure but we are absolutely certain not to have endangered anyone with our transgression. The problem is, nobody has better solutions and no 2 people have the same interpretation of where a limit should be.Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- Because for you deviated implies the other rider MUST have been made to fall and fail to finish ??? I don’t know if you ride a bike but next time someone carves you up or drives dangerously close, just hold back from those feelings of changing something, reporting or filming or even complaining. Everyone will just say, hey you’re still here undamaged, doesn’t seem like anyone did anything.Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
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