Fresh from claiming a record-equalling fifth Tour de France title, Tadej Pogacar will race this month's Vuelta a España as he bids to complete cycling's Grand Tour treble.
The 27-year-old Slovenian, who rides for UAE Team Emirates-XRG, will start as the overwhelming favourite for the three-week race after joining Jacques Anquetil, Eddy Merckx, Bernard Hinault and Miguel Indurain as a five-time Tour de France champion.
Having won the 2024 Giro d'Italia by almost 10 minutes, Pogacar now has the chance to become just the ninth rider in history to win all three Grand Tours if he triumphs in Spain. His best Vuelta finish came in 2019, when he placed third on his Grand Tour debut.
"I'm excited to say I'm going back to La Vuelta," Pogacar said. "It was my first ever Grand Tour back in 2019 and an amazing experience.
"Spain is a country I love to visit and race in, and I think the time is right to go back.
"The motivation is high to finish off the year in a good way and the Vuelta will be a big target. The team is strong and we hope to do good things."
This year's Vuelta begins in Monaco on 22 August before concluding in Granada on 13 September, with riders tackling 21 stages featuring time trials, sprint finishes, rolling terrain and high-mountain climbs.
Pogacar has already built one of the most decorated résumés in modern cycling. Alongside his five Tour de France victories and Giro d'Italia triumph, he has won the Tour of Flanders three times, Milan-San Remo once, the Road World Championships twice, Il Lombardia five times and Liège-Bastogne-Liège four times.
He is also expected to defend his Road World Championships rainbow jersey in Montreal, Canada, just a week after the Vuelta concludes.
Although the Vuelta is one of cycling's three Grand Tours, many of the sport's biggest names have traditionally prioritised the Tour de France over the Spanish and Italian races. Merckx, Anquetil and Hinault all added Vuelta titles to their glittering careers.
Pogacar heads to Spain in formidable form after winning this year's Tour de France by more than six minutes ahead of Belgium's Remco Evenepoel. Renowned for his explosive attacks and relentless climbing ability, the Slovenian has shown few signs of vulnerability this season.
He has won six of the seven UCI WorldTour races he has contested in 2026, with his only defeat coming at Paris-Roubaix, where he finished runner-up after a dramatic duel with Belgium's Wout van Aert.
