Adam Yates on stopping Jonas Vingegaard at the Giro d'Italia and emulating his twin brother Simon - 'Nobody is unbeatable'

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When it comes to preparing for the Giro d'Italia, there is perhaps no one better suited to make a push for the maglia rosa than UAE Team Emirates-XRG's Adam Yates.

Yates: 'Everyone knows' Vingegaard is clear favourite but UAE can 'win in different ways'

Video credit: TNT Sports

Firstly, his twin brother Simon won the three-week race last year, so ending with the general classification (GC) title is already in the family.

And secondly, he is a UAE Team Emirates-XRG team-mate of Tadej Pogacar, arguably the greatest rider of his generation and serial Grand Tour winner.

With Pogacar missing the Giro this year as he instead focuses on the Tour de France, Yates has been handed the baton of spearheading UAE's charge for the maglia rosa.

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But in his way stands clear favourite Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike), who is making his debut appearance at the Giro, which starts on May 8, live on TNT Sports and HBO Max.

The Dane is many people's tip to end the race on top, including Yates.

"Who do you think?" the 33-year-old quips with a smile when asked by TNT Sports for this year's favourite. "I think obviously everyone knows it's Jonas. He's going to be tough to beat."

But "tough to beat" doesn't mean "unbeatable" in Yates' book.

"Unbeatable? I think nobody's unbeatable," he said. "But obviously it will be pretty difficult."

'Done everything I can' - Vingegaard 'ready to fight for victory' at Giro

Video credit: TNT Sports

After a successful preparation period, Yates believes that his UAE team can thrive despite not having their "strongest rider" there.

"I think when you don't have Tadej on the team, we always kind of go into the races with options," he said. "I think the team have confidence in me, confidence in me to do a good GC, but I think we also have other options.

"When you don't really have the absolute strongest guy in the race, I think you also can't afford to put all your eggs in one basket."

Yates added: "Depending on if and when [Vingegaard] takes the [GC] jersey, it could be a big fight from behind and then tactical games start to be played. So, hopefully, we can be a part of that and then we'll see what happens."

Following in Simon's footsteps

When Yates' brother Simon won the Giro last year, it was a momentous moment for their family and British cycling in general.

He became only the second British men's cyclist to win multiple Grand Tours after Chris Froome, having won the Vuelta a Espana in 2018.

Simon retired from cycling earlier this year, but the two brothers still find time to ride together when they can.

Simon was a long-time team-mate of Vingegaard's, but Adam admits that there are "not many secrets" shared between the two, even if it might give the UAE man a leg up over his Visma opponent.

"I think in cycling now there are not many secrets to be shared. It's all high performance and a lot of sacrifice, a lot of focus," he said. "So I think everyone's kind of on the same page. It's all about staying out of trouble and playing your cards when you can play them."

How Vingegaard should attack Giro - Voigt

Video credit: TNT Sports

But having that Giro success in the family has added a "big motivation" for Yates heading into the 2026 edition of the race.

"I was at his house a few days ago and I saw the trophy in his living room," he said. "So, obviously, it's a big motivation for me to see him win.

"I kind of saw both sides of the coin last year when we obviously lost with Isaac [del Toro] but then my brother won.

"He's a big motivation and seeing him win last year was a big inspiration for me."

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