Rafal Mayka has signed a two-year contract with UAE Team Emirates and will be part of a support unit led by Tour de France winner Tadej Pogachar.

The 31-year-old Polish climber, currently sixth overall in the Giro d'Italia, appears to be moving into a more domestic role after leading Bora Hansgrohe's Grand Tour ambitions for the past four years.

Pogachar won the Tour de France this year at the age of 21, and UAE Team Emirates, which has acquired many young riders in recent years, is keen to strengthen its Grand Tour team for 2021.

"With the addition of Rafal, our group of climbers will receive a strong boost," said team manager Mauro Gianetti. Rafal will not only be a solid wingman for Tadei Pogachal, but will also allow us to achieve our personal ambitions and give us freedom."

Majka, who turned pro with the Saxo Bank team in 2011, broke through in the 2014 Tour de France, winning two stages and the polka-dot jersey, followed by overall victory at the Tour de Pologne.

He also won a stage at the Tour in 2015, finished third at the Vuelta a España, and won a bronze medal in the Olympic road race in 2016.

In 2017, he moved to Bora-Hansgrohe, where he won stages at the Vuelta and Tour of California and the overall at the Tour of Slovenia. He has not won a race since then and had a disappointing 2018 season, but he has bounced back in 2019 with sixth place finishes at both the Giro d'Italia and the Vuelta a España.

"I am very happy to have been given this opportunity at this point in my career," Majka said.

"I work for Pogachar when I need to, but I also want to create opportunities for myself when I can. In races like Tirreno-Adriatico, Tour de Suisse, and Vuelta a España, I always find good form. In that sense, I'm not your typical Polish rider: I love the heat."

Majka is the second UAE Team Emirates signing for 2021, following Matteo Trentin of the CCC team. They bid farewell to sprinter and classic rider Jasper Philippsen, who is moving to Alpecin Phoenix, and Swiss ruler Tom Bohli, who is moving to Cofidis.

Beulah Hansgrohe has already secured a replacement for Maja in Wilco Kelderman, who joins from Team Sunweb, and the German team has also signed Nils Pollitt from Israel's Startup Nation and five neo-pro riders.