"Racing with Tadej Pogacar is a dream – he’s always been my idol and now he gives me advice": UAE youngster on the huge effect world champion has on his teammates

For Pablo Torres, the moment everything became real came at Tre Valli Varesine, when he suddenly found himself lining up alongside his childhood hero. The 20-year-old told Marca that sharing a race with Tadej Pogacar felt like “a dream”, admitting that the world champion’s influence inside the team goes far beyond race day.

“He has always been my idol,” Torres said in conversation with the Spanish outlet. “Competing with him and working to help him win, as much as I can, is a pleasure."

"He gives advice, but especially very specific advice for the races we do together," continues the Spanish prodigy. "In general, the main thing he has told me is that you have to stay calm and enjoy cycling.”

That mixture of reassurance and mentorship has clearly left a mark. Torres, promoted to UAE Team Emirates - XRG after a standout year in the development pathway, now speaks of Pogacar not as a distant superstar but as a teammate whose presence shapes his daily progress.

Torres’ ascent has been rapid by any measure. In just over two seasons he has gone from junior level at Sanse to racing some of the biggest WorldTour events. He admits the speed of it all has been hard to take in.

“There are many times when you don’t even process it because everything happens so fast that you’re not aware of where you are,” he said. “But I’m slowly taking it in, and for me it is a pleasure to be at UAE. I see myself as just another rider — I don’t feel like things are moving too quickly.”

That said, he is grateful for the steadying voices around him. As he explained, the message from team principal Mauro Gianetti and sports manager Joxean Matxin has been consistent: “They don’t ask me for anything specific in terms of performance. What they want is for me to give the best version of myself. They tell me to stay calm and do things properly but without rushing, because the results will come. They always give me that sense of calm.”

Torres makes no attempt to hide the difficulties of his debut campaign. His crash in the Tour de Hongrie proved one of the toughest moments of his young career. “It was a very hard moment because I had never had such a big crash,” he said. “I was nearly three weeks without touching the bike, and when I came back it was like starting pre-season again.”

But he got himself back to competitive condition just in time for the Tour de l’Avenir — even if the result wasn’t what he expected. “The result was not what I wanted, but I learned a lot,” he admitted. “I had a lot of pressure on me and I had never lived with so much. Everyone expected me to win or at least podium because I had finished second the year before. Carrying all of that has been difficult, but it has taught me how to handle it.”

Even now, he says managing expectation is an ongoing challenge: “Sometimes it is difficult, but you have to focus on giving your best and try not to be affected by what people say.”

This winter, Torres’ focus has been on improving his explosiveness and maintaining good nutrition — the area he says he struggled with most last year. “I’m focusing a lot on that. I want to do things properly so I can stay at a very good weight all season and perform well in 2026.”

He is yet to learn his race calendar and does not know whether he will make his Grand Tour debut, though he is clear about his desire: “Hopefully — I would like to. It would be a pleasure to race a Grand Tour. But there are many riders who also need to be there and the spots are limited.”

Time trialling remains a long-term project, even if he hasn’t yet returned to the TT bike this winter. “Last year I improved a lot. It’s a discipline I really like and feel passionate about. Hopefully in the future it will go well for me.”

Torres also had warm words for his long-time friend and compatriot Pericas, who joins the WorldTour squad for 2026.

“He is an incredible rider with huge talent. Climbing, it is practically impossible to follow him — he is very fast. But he is also a great person, humble and funny. He brings a very good atmosphere to the team.”

The Torres family influence at UAE is set to grow too, with his brother Jaime joining the Gen Z squad and, soon after, his sister Celia confirmed for the UAE Development Team.

“I’ve been giving him a lot of advice,” Torres said of his brother. “I think he can do well. He has seen how I have done things and he can learn from that.”