Tadej Pogačar will return to the Tour de France in search of a fourth yellow jersey, leading a UAE Team Emirates-XRG squad that is nearly identical to the lineup which won the race last year. The team confirmed its eight-rider selection on Friday, with just one change from 2024: Jhonatan Narváez steps in for Juan Ayuso.
Pogačar will be flanked by João Almeida and Adam Yates, both of whom bring climbing strength and high-altitude form. Almeida has claimed three WorldTour stage race victories already this season, while Yates, third overall in 2023, completed the Giro d’Italia earlier this year and brings another layer of experience to the mountains.
The Slovenian’s core support is further strengthened by Pavel Sivakov, a winner at this year’s Ruta del Sol, and a quartet of seasoned engines in Tim Wellens, Nils Politt, Marc Soler, and Narváez. All four have Grand Tour stage wins to their name, with Politt and Wellens likely to contribute heavily on transitional terrain and in controlling breakaways.
Pogačar confident ahead of sixth Tour
Pogačar said he was excited for the Tour to start and felt lucky to have had close to the perfect preparation this year. He added that everything had gone really smoothly, especially coming off a great altitude camp with his teammates, and said that the vibes in the team were amazing right now, which gave him a lot of confidence.
He continued by saying that you can never be fully prepared for something like the Tour de France – it’s unpredictable, and that’s part of what makes it so special. He was expecting a very high level from all the other top riders, with the first few days set to be really exciting for the fans due to open, aggressive stages. The last week, he said, is very climbing-heavy with some iconic stages.
Pogačar concluded that it’s going to be a big fight all the way to Paris, but he’s ready to give everything. He added that it’s hard to believe it’s already his sixth Tour de France, and that time flies.
With Joxean Matxin Fernández again overseeing the operation and a strong sports director group of Andrej Hauptman, Marco Marcato, and Simone Pedrazzini, the setup remains one of the most experienced in the race.
Vingegaard confirmed, rivalry renewed
UAE’s lineup arrives just days after rivals Visma-Lease a Bike confirmed Jonas Vingegaard will defend his Tour title, backed by Giro d’Italia winner Simon Yates and Wout van Aert. Once again, it sets the stage for a showdown between cycling’s two dominant Grand Tour figures.
But for UAE and Pogačar, the mission is unchanged: reclaim yellow in Paris.
UAE Team Emirates-XRG 2025 Tour de France roster
- Tadej Pogačar
- João Almeida
- Adam Yates
- Pavel Sivakov
- Tim Wellens
- Nils Politt
- Jhonatan Narváez
- Marc Soler
