"Sometimes you have the jersey, sometimes you don’t" - Primoz Roglic shrugs off losing Maglia Rosa at Giro d'Italia

For the second time already at the 2025 Giro d'Italia, Primoz Roglic has given up the race lead and the Maglia Rosa on stage 8, after Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe allowed Diego Ulissi to gain enough time in the breakaway to take control of the general classification.

There was an almighty fight for the breakaway over the first half of the stage, allowing the Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe to ride in the wheel, merely monitoring any riders trying to attack. Given the intensity of both the pace of the race and the weather though, it was by no means an easy start to the stage for Roglic and his teammates. “It was a hot, tough day,” the Slovenian explained in a post-stage interview afterwards. “In the end, we had to let that group go.”

Once the group were gone, Roglic and co didn't seem too bothered about keeping the gap at a distance that would retain his Maglia Rosa. Even afterwards, the 2023 Giro d'Italia champion seemed relatively unfazed by the fact he'd passed on the race lead for the second time this Grand Tour. “The guys were super strong,” Roglic said. “We did our best. Sometimes you have the jersey, sometimes you don’t. There are still plenty of stages to come.”

And despite Sunday's stage 9 gravel stage providing plenty of danger for the general classification challengers, Roglic is remaining calm about the fact he longer has the lead team car.  “The difference between car 1 and car 2 isn’t that big,” commented the Slovenian in his typically dry fashion. “Thankfully, we’re not in car number 30.”