'A really easy decision': Tadej Pogacar signs new six-year contract with UAE Team Emirates

Slovenian cycling star talks to The National about his new deal that will take his time with the team to 12 years

UAE Team Emirates rider Tadej Pogacar holds up his bike as he celebrates winning the Tour of Lombardy in Como, Italy, on Saturday, October 12, 2024. AP

Tadej Pogacar celebrates on the podium after winning the Tour of Lombardy. AP

Reigning world champion Tadej Pogacar celebrates as he crosses the finish line to win the Giro di Lombardia. AP

Second-placed Soudal Quick-Step rider Remco Evenepoel, winner Tadej Pogacar and third-placed Lidl-Trek rider Giulio Ciccone celebate on the podium. AFP

Second-placed Remco Evenepoel, left, of Soudal Quick-Step shakes hands on the podium with winner Tadej Pogacar of UAE Team Emirates. AFP

UAE Team Emirates rider Tadej Pogacar in a lone breakaway on the Colma Di Sormano ascent. AFP

UAE Team Emirates rider Tadej Pogacar in the peloton during the race. AFP

Pogacar fans line the race route. AFP

The lead breakaway cycles in the ascent of Selvino. AFP

The lead breakaway cycles through Orrido Di Bracca. AFP

The peloton on the ascent of Forcellino Di Bianzano, near Lago di Endine lake. AFP

Soudal Quick-Step's Remco Evenepoel chats to UAE Team Emirates' Tadej Pogacar before the start of the race. AFP

A record-breaking year for UAE Team Emirates got even better on Thursday when it was announced star rider Tadej Pogacar has committed his future to the team by signing a new six-year contract.

It comes following an astounding season for the world’s most dominant cycling team and the preeminent rider of his generation.

Pogacar, 25, has continued to cement his legacy as an all-time great, becoming only the third male in history to win cycling’s triple crown of the Giro d’Italia, Tour de France and World Championships in the same year. In all, the Slovenian claimed 25 victories this year in what could be regarded as the greatest season in history, certainly of this century.

History was made, too, by UAE Team Emirates, with an unprecedented 20 different riders achieving race and stage wins this season for a total of 81 victories. To put their collective dominance into perspective, the next best team, Lidl-Trek, managed 42 wins.

It makes perfect sense, then, that the best team and cyclist on the planet – who topped the respective season-ending UCI world rankings by runaway distances reminiscent of a Pogacar breakaway – extend their relationship to 2030.

“It was really not a hard decision because I feel really good at UAE Team Emirates,” Pogacar told The National at an event at Abu Dhabi Cycling Club to celebrate the team’s season. “The team is always growing and improving, so it’s hard to look outside of here and find a better team where I would feel more comfortable, so it was a really easy decision.”

Pogacar’s new contract means the three-time Tour de France champion will eventually spend 12 years with UAE Team Emirates, in which time he has transformed from talented teenager to generational superstar. Ominously for his rivals, he should just be entering his prime, and with the guarantee of his future secured.

“It’s a nice thing that you can stay at one team for a long time,” Pogacar said. “It just makes it easier for the team and the rider because we know each other and makes you feel more comfortable. If you change team from year to year, you can miss that improvement and maybe not settle at one team, so I’m very happy I can stay so long here.”

The delight is most certainly mutual, with UAE Team Emirates president Matar Suhail Al Yabhouni Al Dhaheri praising Pogacar for his pivotal role both in the team’s historic success and in driving interest in cycling across the Emirates.

“This is a special moment for the team and for cycling here in the UAE. Tadej is an incredible talent that represents the UAE so amazingly,” Al Dhaheri said. “He is a beacon of inspiration for the next generation and is idolised and loved by so many. It has been a privilege watching him develop into the person he is today, and I couldn’t be prouder of what he’s accomplished for our team.

“As we continue to see our sport go from strength to strength across the region, there is no question that Tadej, alongside his teammates, are a massive reason for this. It’s a special day for cycling and we are so excited for the future.”

Focusing on the future is very much Pogacar’s mindset, instead of reveling in past success. While he describes his third Tour de France title as “special” – after successive runner-up finishes – and the Giro triumph as “one of the highlights of my career”, the Slovenian pays little attention to the many records he has accumulated over the years.

“There is no time for that,” he said. “I just need to keep moving forward, not backward, so we enjoy the moment and continue to look to the future, not the past.”

That future, for both Pogacar and UAE Team Emirates, now looks brighter than ever.