From February 20th to 26th, 2022, the UAE Tour will kick off the World Tour season, featuring a highly anticipated duel between Tadej Pogacar and Egan Bernal. The Abu Dhabi Sports Council has confirmed the event will move forward regardless of COVID-19 concerns, standing firm while other races have been called off. The seven-day itinerary includes a mix of three sprints, a short 9km time trial, and a decisive final ascent up Jebel Hafeet.
The UAE Tour is scheduled to take place from 20th to 26th February 2022. Egan Bernal and Tadej Pogacar are expected to clash in the first World Tour race of the 2022 season. The Abu Dhabi Sports council confirmed that the first World Tour race of 2022 will take place despite COVID-19 concerns. Though the COVID-19 pandemic has sparked the cancellation of some races, the UAE Tour is on. The seven-day race includes three sprints, a nine-kilometer time trial, and a final mountain stage to the summit of Jebel Hafeet.
The event has a difficult history with the pandemic, as the 2020 UAE Tour was among the first to be disrupted. That year, the final stage was canceled, leaving riders and staff from teams like UAE Team Emirates, Gazprom-RusVelo, Cofidis, and Groupama-FDJ in quarantine. Looking forward, Aref Al Awani of Abu Dhabi Sports thanked the supervising authorities for their hard work and welcomed the world's top cyclists, hoping this tour sets a positive tone for the rest of the year.
UAE Team Emirates is determined to keep the trophy at home for a second consecutive year. Tadej Pogacar, the 2021 champion, sees this race as a primary objective for his 2022 debut. He'll be entering the competition with added strength, supported by new additions Joao Almeida and George Bennett.
On the opposing side, Ineos Grenadiers will be led by Egan Bernal, with Filippo Ganna focusing on the time trial and Elia Viviani eyeing the sprint wins. Meanwhile, Tom Dumoulin is expected to spearhead the Jumbo-Visma squad, while Bora-Hansgrohe will feature Sam Bennett and Aleksandr Vlasov in their new team colors. Additionally, Jack Haig will be a serious contender for the overall win as the leader for Bahrain Victorious.
Before arriving in the UAE, the Colombian star Egan Bernal is expected to warm up with a debut at the four-day Tour de la Provence. While Bernal and Pogacar haven't faced each other frequently in major races, both have incredible resumes. Bernal claimed the Tour de France in 2019 at just 22; shortly after, Pogacar took the 2020 title just before his own 22nd birthday, winning while Bernal was sidelined by a back injury.
More recently, Bernal triumphed at the 2021 Giro d’Italia, while Pogacar added a second Tour de France victory to his name last summer. The UAE Tour is poised to be the opening chapter in a series of confrontations between these two titans and their powerhouse teams leading up to the Tour de France.