Pogacar's fatigue in the words of UAE DS Gianetti: "The physical and mental demands are very, very significant"
Cycling
Tadej Pogacar had the Vuelta a España outlined in his schedule for this year but the Slovenian arrived at the end of the Tour de France mentally and physically exhausted. It was not healthy to keep racing at that same level at this time, and team DS Mauro Gianetti went in depth as to why the World Champion was so tired by the end of the Grand Boucle.
“Being Tadej Pogacar today is nice, but it’s not easy. He has a lot of pressure. When he races, everybody expects him to go well, to win, to put on a show. So it’s important for us to manage this aspect, Gianetti ensured to Domestique. "He’s not just a rider – it’s an important dimension, being Tadej Pogačar, so he needs to have enough physical and mental rest to be happy in the races, to enjoy himself and to provide entertainment like he has always done.”
In the final week of the Tour he had to race more conservatively as Jonas Vingegaard and Team Visma | Lease a Bike gave it their all to assault the yellow jersey, and with virtually no easy day at this year's race, it took a bigger toll than all other Tours had.
Combining that with countless trips to the podium and media appearances; the months of specific preparation at altitude and at the equally brutal Criterium du Dauphiné, then you had a rider who was still above the competition but was already showing very clear signs of fatigue. His short answers and brevity in interviews and celebrations over the closing days of the race were an obvious sign, and he has also acknowledged having thoughts of retirement for the upcoming years.
“He lived a very stressful Tour. It was a very demanding Tour, especially from a physical point of view. There were a lot of transfers. And for him, being Tadej, it became very difficult. He’s a very uncomplicated lad, and being there every day as the centre of attention becomes tiring. He was tired, like everybody, I think," the Swiss continued. But all of that did come with it's well-earned reward.
“But he won the Tour, and he won it with a smile. On the last day in Paris, he put on an incredible show together with van Aert [on Montmarte], and I think this was the best possible answer. He could have sat calmly in the middle of the bunch, but he wanted to make the race and honour himself, honour Tadej Pogacar, honour the Tour de France and honour his rivals. I think what he did on the last day in Paris, with a smile, was the answer to everything that had been said.”
“Doing the Classics like he did this year, all the Classics, from Strade Bianche to Flanders to Roubaix to Amstel and Liège, it’s a very, very high level of demand and maybe from the outside people don’t realise that. People think they’re just one-day races, but a Paris-Roubaix is more shattering than a week-long stage race," Gianetti adds.
After the cobbled classics, the World Champion added another Flèche Wallonne and Liège-Bastogne-Liège to his palmarès, winning seemingly comfortably both races.
“Doing all the Classics is more shattering than doing a Grand Tour, especially when you do all the Classics like he did, because there’s the transition from the pavé to the climbs, there are changes in temperature, you have different parcours and you have to go up against different champions to the ones you race against in the Grand Tours. The physical and mental demands are very, very significant, so it absolutely wasn’t a good idea to participate in the Vuelta.”
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)...
Within 18 months of launch, he helped grow CyclingUpToDate’s English-language platform into one of the most-read cycling news websites, built entirely from the ground up. As both a professional journalist and lifelong cycling enthusiast, his focus remains on delivering accurate, timely, and well-contextualized coverage.
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- I live in Maribor.PogiSloFans14-11-2026
- I live in Ljubljana and often go on trips in the surrounding area, where I frequently see young cyclists in 'Pogi Team' jerseys training, either alone or in groups. By simply motivating so many young people to take up cycling, Tadej has already achieved something truly significant.Velijo14-11-2026
- That's an excellent point. It's interesting that Vader came to that realization only after he learned that his contract wasn't going to be renewed.
santiagobenites14-11-2026 - Indeed! A reluctant gift maybe. Even more reluctant gift from Roglic! Tho I can’t see that Rog would have beaten Ving anyway.Lozza14-11-2026
- That really nasty crash in 2022 Liege must have played a big part - broken ribs, pneumothorax. You only have to look at his points tallies pre and post.Lozza14-11-2026
- Yeah, good luck getting tv and race organisers like ASO etc to part with their cash!Lozza14-11-2026
- 36 and Ineos have bought a rider on the downward slope. Bring back Dave and Rob who could manage the team. How are Ineos going to win a grand tour with people past their sell by date.paultryan200214-11-2026
- Mmmm would he be making these comments when he was on the richest team when riding. I think not i suspect. If we want money put into the sport we need sponsors who are prepared to put the money in. No disrespect but his team are 2nd or 3rd div in football terms with riders over the hill or 2nd string riders. If i was a sponsor i would be looking at what publicity am i getting back and Tudor really are just making up the numbers really.paultryan200214-11-2026
- I see (elsewhere) that Alaphilippe had more to say than what got relayed in this stub. Me: he was very good early but his latter third trajectory was the pits. His old boss did what he could (huffed and puffed) but Julian couldn't get his greatness back. Sometimes I wonder if crashes that didn't look like much changed the course of the rider.flyer14-11-2026
- I wouldn't classify it as a gift because the nasty consequences of taking it from Sepp would have been great and would persist and he knew it.flyer14-11-2026
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