Tour de France winner Tadej Pogacar will not participate in the Vuelta

Appearing tired at the end of the Tour de France, the 26-year-old Slovenian, third in the Vuelta in 2019 during his only participation, "will take a well-deserved break before returning to competition in North America", at the Grand Prix of Quebec and Montreal in September, his team said in a press release.

"After such a demanding Tour, we decided it was best to take a break," Pogacar said in the statement.

"The Vuelta is obviously a race I would like to race again; I have wonderful memories of 2019, but today my body is telling me it needs to rest," he added.

"Delighted to return to Canada" for "difficult but magnificent" races, Pogacar targeted these events to "find a good level for this part of the season, and especially for the World Championships" which will take place in Rwanda at the end of September, with the road race as the highlight on the 28th.

The Tour of Spain is the only major tour missing from the Slovenian's extraordinary list of achievements, having won the Tour de France four times (2020, 2021, 2024, 2025) and the Giro d'Italia once (2024), to mention only the three-week races.

In Pogacar's absence, Joao Almeida will take on the role of leader of the UAE team. The 26-year-old Portuguese rider, who was the Slovenian's main lieutenant in the Tour de France, was forced to abandon the 9th stage two days after a crash.

Winner of the Tours of the Basque Country, Romandie, and Switzerland this season, Almeida will be able to count on Spaniard Juan Ayuso to support him during the three weeks of racing. Mikkel Bjerg, Felix Grossschartner, Domen Novak, Ivo Oliveira, Marc Soler, and Jay Vine complete the team.

The Vuelta starts in Italy, in Turin on August 23, with three first Italian stages and even a foray into the French Alps during the fourth, before finally reaching Spain for the 5th stage.