Tadej Pogacar coy on competing at Vuelta a Espana amid upcoming chance to take step nearer to 'completing cycling'

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What chance is there of Tadej Pogacar taking another step towards completing cycling by competing in the upcoming Vuelta a Espana? The Slovenian's palmares does not have many gaps - but the third Grand Tour of the year is one of them.

'Let's see' - Pogacar coy on competing at Vuelta

Video credit: TNT Sports

Pogacar, who secured his fifth Tour de France crown on Sunday, has only competed once at the Vuelta back in 2019, when he walked off with three stage wins, third place on GC, and the best young rider jersey.

At 20 years old at that time, no one could have predicted what he would go on to achieve, with the now 27-year-old possessing arguably the greatest collection of wins in the sport's history.

The versatile Pogacar has his five Tour titles, together with a Giro d'Italia title won in 2024, but he has also shone in the one-day races, compiling triumphs at the likes of Milano-Sanremo, the Tour of Flanders and the world road race championships, among a slew of other successes.

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It has led to many cycling fans wondering if the Slovenian can 'complete cycling' by ticking off the very few races he has not won in his dazzling career.

One of those is the mythical Paris-Roubaix, where Pogacar came second to Wout van Aert earlier this year, but also the Vuelta, which is where his Grand Tour pedigree began.

Pogacar was the best young rider at the Vuelta in 2019.
Image credit: Getty Images

"Let's see, let's see," Pogacar said to Eurosport's Anders Mielke, smiling, when asked if he would be competing in Spain.

"First let's decompress from this Tour and then we can reassess and see what's the situation.

"Would be nice to go to Spain."

One angle which might make a tilt at the Vuelta more meaningful to Pogacar is the fact the race starts in Monaco, where he currently lives.

The format of Stage 1 is an individual time trial and so there could be a chance for him to sit in red after just one stage.

But would Pogacar be ready, physically and mentally, after his feats at the Tour over three gruelling weeks, with the Vuelta starting in under a month, on August 22?

Or perhaps on the contrary, he will rarely be in better shape than he is now, and - with the cycling calendar unlikely to change - if not this year, when?

Watch: Pogacar accepts acclaim as he mounts podium to celebrate FIFTH Tour crown

Video credit: TNT Sports

Prior to the Tour, Spanish great Alberto Contador had already been calling for the Slovenian to come to his homeland, as he explained the reasons why, in his view, it makes sense.

"I would understand him racing it given the limited number of days of competition he's had [this year]," Contador said.

"They've been very intense - Strade Bianche, the Monuments, Romandie, Switzerland, and the Tour - but I think he could perfectly well do the Vuelta and then the World Championships.

"Especially since [the Vuelta is] a race he doesn't yet have in his palmares and it's unlikely he'll have such a light racing schedule again.

"In his situation, I would do the Vuelta, the World Championships, and Lombardy. I think it's perfectly compatible; any given day of Tadej's home training load is more demanding than a stage in a Grand Tour."

Watch this space, Pogi fans.