"Our goal was to be closer on GC to him" - BORA disappointed but not defeated against Tadej Pogacar at Giro d'Italia
Cycling
Daniel Martínez is, by all means, performing above expectations at the Giro d'Italia. However taking into consideration how well he has raced at times, BORA - hansgrohe is rightfully ambitious. Enrico Gasparotto, DS of the team at the race, talks about how the team is looking into how to surprise the race leader and is indeed thinking of the victory.
“Sitting second in the GC is the best we could achieve. Against Tadej Pogačar, it looks at the moment pretty difficult to do something, but we have to consider the fact that we did two top mountain finishes and in both of them we did second with Dani," Gasparotto said in words to GCN. "He’s been so solid until now and we’re here to support him in the next two weeks.”
Martínez has in the past finished high in the Giro, but due to his lack of consistency over the past couple years it was hard to see him as a true contender for the podium. Over the opening week of the race, he has been spotless and sits second, sandwiched between Pogacar and Geraint Thomas within the podium.
“Pogačar after this Giro will also do the Tour de France, so we expected that he wanted to kill the Giro in the first week and then control on the second and third week. It’s nothing new, and our dream, our goal was to be closer on GC to him, but it’s still a long way to Rome," Gasparotto adds.
However, despite being almost three minutes behind in a week where it can even be argued that on most days there were expectations of bigger losses, BORA still think of pink: “We have to be as passionate as possible. We have to be ready if it happens, to see Tadej maybe suffering or struggling one day, we should be there to use the opportunity.”
This is however despite a lineup that has already lost Florian Lipowitz, who was going to be the most important rider in the mountains for the Colombian: “We’re losing a little bit of our potential in the high mountains for sure compared to Ineos, AG2R or UAE, so we have to be creative to find a way to support Dani as far as possible on some crucial finals that are coming in the next week.”
Max Schachmann, now a key domestique for Martínez, admits that the team will try but are aware of the difficult situation they face if they want to dream of a Giro win: “It’s going to be very hard to attack Tadej, even if we’re going to have an alliance, because he’s such a versatile rider."
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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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