Sepp Kuss has been part of every single Grand Tour victory of Primoz Roglic. With no doubt he's an integral part of Jumbo-Visma and as the team seeks to perform greatly at the Tour de France, the American has been brought to the Giro d'Italia to be the Slovenian's right-hand man through the mountains.
“I think he has become a stronger Grand Tour rider. Moreover, he now has a better team around him. We have drivers for the mountain stages and other difficult stages, but it is important to have an all-terrain team," Sepp Kuss told AS. "If only to prevent bad luck in the final week. The main goal is to assist Primož, as he is a candidate winner. He therefore needs the full support of the team. I hope to climb with the top riders in the mountains in the third week. If that works out, I'll be happy. The high mountains will be the key to success.”
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Covid has been putting strain on the team, but Kuss and Jan Tratnik, who were expected to be Roglic's main support, remain in the lineup. The American rode to fifth at the UAE Tour when given his opportunity earlier in the year, and as he prepares to race the Giro-Tour double he's had a conservative calendar until today. In the altitude and the colossal mountain stages the Giro has to offer he should be in his terrain, but the weather can turn out to be quite different than what he experiences in other Grand Tour.
The goal however is the victory by any means. "I don't think Primož sees the Giro as a kind of revenge race. But the Giro is very important for Primož," the 28-year old assures. This will only be the second Giro of his career, the first was in 2019 when he supported Roglic to the podium.
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A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
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- for what?frieders311-11-2026
- Blah blah blah!frieders311-11-2026
- Where Merckx just rode every single race he could and won all the time, Hinault won less often (percentage wise) because he was more judicious in what he raced. His palmares are nuts. He had amazing rivals, one to start his career and another to end it in the grand tours. His classics were solid. What sets him apart from Merckx and Pogačar are that he basically dabbled in the classics while the other two love(d) them. I used to compare Pogačar to Hinault for his grand tour record and occasional classics win, until I realized that the comparison was wrong. Pogačar loves the classics - ah, the memory of his reaction to finishing fourth in a 2 person sprint in Flanders in ‘22: utter domination in any one day race since then, even when he doesn’t win. Hinault lived for the grand tours and I don’t think anyone else will ever reach his record. 10 wins in 13 attempts? Good lord. An amazing rider. Wish there was more footage to watch.RidesHills11-11-2026
- I had no idea about that either.
santiagobenites10-11-2026 - great analysis thanks! appreciate you posting this. I didn't realize CX had a different standard for deviation. this is even more egregious it seems.mij10-11-2026
- As he isn't currently with Red Bull, I guess if he want to race for one more year he needs to find a team. He's 37 so this will be his last year I would guess, unless he wants to race for almost nothing like Froome did.awp10-11-2026
- I think some are making much ado about nothing. Even though Jonas is getting older, before his crash in the Tour, he looked like a solid 2nd all the way home. No one can really climb with Tadej until this year, Eric Mas showed himself which I think was a one off year for him and Paul Seixas has been able to be pretty close to him. Whatever stage race Jonas enters as long as Tadej is not there he is a favorite to win.awp10-11-2026
- Giro or not Giro, he won't win the Tour!MajorPayne10-11-2026
- Very true.awp10-11-2026
- Ciccone had a very strong end of season. Consistently attacking and livening up races. Hope he makes that last leap in progress and starts notching some significant wins. Great rider to watch.Occam10-11-2026
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🇮🇹 #Giro Pre-Giro training ride! 😎
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