UAE Team Emirates-XRG have announced their team to support Tadej Pogačar at the Tour of Flanders on Sunday as the world champion chases a second victory at the cobbled Monument.
Classics specialists Nils Politt and Mikkel Bjerg head up the strong support squad, the pair having finished third and fourth at the race last season.
Ecuadorian champion Jhonatan Narváez, a new addition to UAE for 2025, is also on board, as is Belgian racer Tim Wellens. Up-and-coming Portuguese rider António Morgado is also taking part, with Florian Vermeersch completing the lineup, despite a list featuring Rui Oliveira's name.
"Flanders is an amazing race and for sure ranks as one of the most important victories in my career," Pogačar said.
"The energy of the race and the passion for cycling in this region is something special. The team is very strong, and I think we can give a really good showing to try and ride for the victory."
It's widely expected that Pogačar, who has wins at the UAE Tour and Strade Bianche to his name this season, will battle Milan-San Remo and E3 Saxo Classic champion Mathieu van der Poel for the win in Oudenaarde on Sunday. Mads Pedersen and his Lidl-Trek are also possible contenders.
Van de Poel won the Ronde in 2020, 2022, and 2024, beating Pogačar in the 2020 edition in a four-rider sprint. However, he was beaten by the Slovenian in 2023 after Pogačar dropped him on the Paterberg and soloed to the finish.
The duo will also face off on the cobbles of Paris-Roubaix on April 13 after UAE last week confirmed the long-standing rumour that Pogačar would race the Hell of the North.
Pogačar is hoping for a successful cobbled Classics campaign.
"In Milano- San Remo, we had a great race and a good battle between the rivals and I'm looking forward to doing it all again on Sunday, albeit in different circumstances," he said.
One final cobbled test lies in wait for the men's peloton ahead of Sunday, with the Dwars door Vlaanderen coming up on Wednesday.
Neither Pogačar nor Van der Poel will be taking part in the warm-up race, though UAE also confirmed their team, with Bjerg, Politt, Narváez, Oliveira, and Wellens joined by Filippo Baroncini and Classic Brugge-De Panne champion Juan Sebastián Molano.
