Tadej Pogacar coming under pressure in UCI Rankings? - How the 2025 and 2026 final points tallies show Slovenian's time at the top could be limited
Cycling
Tadej Pogacar has sat at the top of the UCI Points Rankings for five straight years since taking the top spot at the end of September in 2021, and through several seasons has reigned as the undisputed best cyclist in the world.
In a season where he won three monuments and the Tour de France, the UAE Team Emirates-XRG has looked more dominant than ever, taking top class wins at Milano Sanremo, Tour of Flanders and Liege-Bastogne-Liege on the way to his dominant Tour display.
Taking a fifth yellow jersey, things didn't fully go to plan from there as he suffered a season-ending crash at the Vuelta a Espana - ruling him out of a World Championships campaign as he targeted a third rainbow jersey in a row.
Pogacar topped the UCI rankings once again across 2026, but with his premature end to the season and the rise of two significant rivals, the Slovenian's grip on the top spot isn't as strong as it was twelve months ago.
Paul Seixas and Tadej Pogacar
Pogacar's reduced points
The 28-year-old's UCI points tally for 2026 stands at 9331 points, down over 2000 points from the 11655 haul twelve months earlier. Of course, the incomplete Vuelta and missed goals of the World Championships and Il Lombardia.
Looking over his shoulder, Pogacar doesn't have Jonas Vingegaard in second place. Instead, Remco Evenepoel and Paul Seixas have moved up the rankings on 2025 as they enjoyed successful seasons.
As well as the new contenders, Evenepoel's success including a stellar Tour de France and one-day victories at the European Championships and Clasica San Sebastian as well as Seixas's meteoric rise to prominence and crowning Il Lombardia victory, the standard of the chase has moved up a level.
Rise of Seixas and Evenepoel
Seixas alone jumped 64 places, taking close to five times the amount of UCI Points this season than in 2025. Evenepoel, too, had taken over 3000 more points in 2026.
Further down, Isaac del Toro remained strong in fourth place, while Vingegaard's reduced influence can be accredited to his season ending with injury at the Tour de France. Tom Pidcock, Jasper Philipsen, Wout van Aert and Felix Gall are all riders in the top ten that have experienced gains this season, but its Evenepoel and Seixas who could prove decisive.
With the pair sizing up new ways to challenge the Slovenian in 2027, the change in this year's UCI Rankings could signal that Pogacar could face a challenge to hold onto his crown uninterrupted for another twelve months.
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2026 and 2025 UCI Riders Rankings
| 2026 Position | Rider | Team | 2026 Points | Movement since 2025 | 2025 Position | 2025 Points |
| 1 | POGAČAR Tadej | UAE Team Emirates - XRG | 9331.8 | -- | 1 | 11655 |
| 2 | EVENEPOEL Remco | Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe | 7191.6 | +3 | 5 | 4093 |
| 3 | SEIXAS Paul | Decathlon CMA CGM Team | 5580.4 | +64 | 67 | 1128 |
| 4 | DEL TORO Isaac | UAE Team Emirates - XRG | 5456.5 | -1 | 3 | 5664 |
| 5 | PIDCOCK Tom | Pinarello Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team | 4411.5 | +2 | 7 | 3874 |
| 6 | VINGEGAARD Jonas | Team Visma | Lease a Bike | 4160.8 | -4 | 2 | 5944 |
| 7 | VAN AERT Wout | Team Visma | Lease a Bike | 3758.6 | +3 | 10 | 2908 |
| 8 | PHILIPSEN Jasper | Alpecin - Premier Tech | 3665.6 | +9 | 17 | 2438 |
| 9 | GALL Felix | Decathlon CMA CGM Team | 3425 | +13 | 22 | 2216 |
| 10 | VAN DER POEL Mathieu | Alpecin - Premier Tech | 3404.6 | -2 | 8 | 3838 |
Gavin QuinnCycling Journalist
Gavin Quinn is a cycling journalist and ultra-distance cyclist with a BA in Journalism from Dublin City University. Formerly the Press & Communications Officer for Cycling Ireland, Gavin has worked inside the national team at the World Championships and has reported for the Irish Mirror, Mirror UK, and The42.
His expertise is backed by elite-level access, having interviewed stars like Sam Bennett and Ben Healy, as well as immense personal endurance. In 2025, he completed a 12,000km solo cycle from Ireland to Vietnam, following a 4,600km tour across Europe. From the cobbles of Paris-Roubaix to the gradients of the Tourmalet, Gavin’s writing focuses on the "romance and brutality" of the sport. Having visited 50+ countries, he brings a global, cultural perspective to his coverage of the pro peloton for CyclingUpToDate.
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- tragedy for suremij30-10-2026
- if he can win the Giro, he should go. Tadej won't be there. Remco has won the Vuelta already. this gets him 2/3 of the way through the trilogy. even if Remco takes 2 minutes out of Tadej in the TTs - and I don't think he will - but should he, then Tadej wins by 8 minutes instead of 10? Remco has been so far below Tadej's level in LBL, TdF, Lombardia, and more. he is light years away from beating him in the TdF.mij30-10-2026
- Tadej is a pretty great time trialist. he is no Remco, no one is, but Tadej has won 40% of his TTs and podiumed far more.mij30-10-2026
- As long as he stays healthy, he´ll be just fine :)Lukicinho30-10-2026
- as much as i like JV, i dont see him winning another tour as long as Pog is around, and even then, he might be past his prime vs the younger guys.Crashjames30-10-2026
- This is cause Visma isnt good enough and realize that they cant contest for the TDF anymore(they dont have the means) thats why they will transition to this indeed. And its the right call.miguel30-10-2026
- With this course, don't be surprised is Seixas wins it if Tadej doesn't close on the tt's. There are a lot of ifs, let see how the early season goes for all of them.awp30-10-2026
- That's true. Even one Tour win is a dream.awp30-10-2026
- As someone of non-Flemish background, the surname 'Lambrecht' does not stir happy memories
Rafionain-Glas30-10-2026 - This team is so smart with their signings. They know exactly who they are. What their limits are. And don’t pretend to be something they’re notmij30-10-2026
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