Speculation continues over a possible return to racing for Tadej Pogačar at the Tour Down Under, the six-day WorldTour stage race in Australia that begins on January 19, 2027. The race would mark a return to somewhat familiar territory for the Slovenian, who made his WorldTour debut with UAE Team Emirates at the event in 2019, finishing 13th overall.
Tour Down Under race director Stuart O’Grady added fuel to the speculation on a Stanley St. Social podcast.
“Of course, I'm doing everything we can to get the likes of Tadej here. It’s hard to go past how big this guy is, and we all want to see him race here again,” O’Grady told Stanley St. Social.
“His manager came down; Alex Carrera was here for the last stage in January just to have a look around and get his own, I guess, view of the race and for him to see the setup we have with the village and the hotel.”
For O’Grady, the fact that teams do not have to switch hotels every day, a respite from the “travelling circus”, is a bonus for the riders and provides a connection "with the whole community.”
Pogačar was forced to bring his season to an early end after sustaining injuries in a crash at the Vuelta a España. With his recovery nearly complete, the focus now shifts to rebuilding his form ahead of the new season. And of course, that led to speculation about starting the 2027 road season early in Australia.
Also forced to end her season early was Urška Žigart, who re-fractured her jaw in a crash at Faun Tour Femmes in September. The AG Insurance-Soudal has been recovering and training with her fiancé Pogačar.
“We're just hoping he recovers and he can get back to the level which we'll hope and pray that he can,” O’Grady said. “Urška also had a horrible crash as well. So, they'll be sitting around. We just want them to get better and then if they decide that they want to start racing earlier, then of course we're going to welcome that and do what we can.”
Pogačar’s provisional calendar for 2027 will be revealed at the team's December training camp and media day.
In the podcast, O’Grady also shared the challenges of having the women's event run alongside the final three days of the men's event, as well as the Australian summer of racing and some highlights of the Tour Down Under course.
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