The list of Tadej Pogacar's palmares is already astounding at the age of just 27. The Slovenian phenomenon can win Grand Tours, hilly classics, on cobbles, doesn't fear echelons nor reduced sprints. The only discipline where he lacks something something on the best in the world is timetrialing where Remco Evenepoel is normally on a whole another level.
In 2023, just a day before his infamous breakdown on Col de la Loze, Pogacar took a massive defeat from Jonas Vingegaard who put a 1:38 into Pogacar over a 22-kilometer medium-mountain time trial to Combloux. That Tour de France edition still remains in fact the last stage race Pogacar had lost to this day.
Since then, the UAE Team Emirates - XRG star continues to work on his time trialing, which paid off with stage wins at both Giro d'Italia and Tour de France, but within the "Pogacar-metric" those are only small accomplishments. When it comes to World Championships against the clock, Pogacar is yet to collect a medal after having come one second shy of bronze medallist Ilan Van Wilder in Kigali 2025. And over 2:30 behind Evenepoel.
The 2026 Tour de France, will start with a team time trial where individual's ability won't be as important of a factor, however the 26-kilometer individual time trial on stage 16 could play an important role towards the final GC. Pogacar will not want to lose any time there to his main challengers Jonas Vingegaard and Remco Evenepoel.
Mystery TT bike
Pogacar does not have "defeat" in his vocabulary, and so, alongside the bike supplier of UAE - Colnago - the Slovenian was sighted testing some rather unfamilar TT specials.
Cyclingnews searched for more details, however Colnago responded with a firm 'no comment' regarding any information regarding the tested model, leaving room for guessing and assumptions.
What is clear is that this mystery bike seems slimmer than the current Colnago TT1 time trial bike released back in May 2022. The bike has shallower and much less aggressively shaped frame tube profiles in certain areas. Everything with an attention to the detail so that Pogacar can deliver the best performance possible when it matters the most.
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 was a child two years ago
Rafionain-Glas03-11-2026 - A great route aswell. Col d'Arpy is a toughieRafionain-Glas03-11-2026
- Let Torito have a shot at itRafionain-Glas03-11-2026
- A great route, much more exciting than the Tour de France. Monte Livata is an interesting one, because they experimented with it at the 2026 Baby Giro, and it was fantastic. 4 km at 10%, then 10 km at 6.5% made for a great spectacle. The stage 16 is horrible. Montaner is also used in the U23s, in Giro del BelvedereRafionain-Glas03-11-2026
- I remember when Mark went through that. He was really experiencing lows and thought about quiting many times. It took him a long time to recover. I, like many others were overjoyed when he came back. I hope Lafay has been tested. I wish him the best.Paggss03-11-2026
- That sucks for him. I've always wondered what guys like him do after retiring from cycling - go back to uni? He's still a very young manCrashjames03-11-2026
- Good Point, I wonder if he's been testedmhfrvz03-11-2026
- A busy boy!Lozza03-11-2026
- I hope 2027 is his year.mij03-11-2026
- why does he have to? many GT riders from Froome to Contador to Indurain didn't do them.mij03-11-2026
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