Primoz Roglic has been severely underwhelming throughout the first two weeks of the Giro d'Italia, and even solid rides against the clock can't hide that fact anymore. Even though riders are yet to fact the stages projected as decisive, the Slovenian finds himself already almost four minutes behind the Maglia Rosa.
For a long time, he could only guess whether the always-calm Roglic was really not in his best, or just patiently awaiting the big mountains of third week. "I think we can now conclude that it's option 1," Thijs Zonneveld analyzes in the podcast In de Waaier, after the Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe leader lost minute and a half in a relatively easy finish of stage 15.
"He's just not that good," the Dutchman doesn't pick words. "That's not a particularly difficult climb. They're riding at an average speed of 30 kilometers per hour, which gives you an advantage if you're in the group. But he's simply being dropped; he's one of the weakest in that group."
Of course it's not like Roglic arrived to Giro d'Italia in such poor form. It shouldn't be underestimated that the Slovenian hit the deck a couple times already, most notably during the gravel stage 9, but also two days later during time trial recon and he wasn't spared even in Nova Gorica carnage of stage 14. "He's had a few bad crashes, so he was actually hanging on by a thread. On such a day, when it's so hard all day long, he's bound to break down at some point."
But Zonneveld also looks at things from a wider perspective, noting that Roglic was historically less convincing in long, hard mountain stages. "It's always been his weakness."
But one thing he was always phenomenal at was that final kilometer, that kick to the line that won him so many stages. "Roglic is really good at short bursts of effort between 5 minutes and half an hour. That has been his great specialty. Over the years, and with the change of team, you can see that the absolute sharpness of that sprint is gone. He didn't show that Roglic finish in the Giro, where he crushes everyone in the last 100 meters, not once."
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Ondrej ZhasilCycling Journalist
Ondřej Zhasil is a cycling journalist at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2023. He is based in Ostrava, the third-largest city in the Czech Republic, and covers professional cycling across the main UCI competitions, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España. A key focus of his work is startlist analysis and pre-race coverage, where he examines team selections, rider line-ups, and tactical scenarios ahead of major events.
Alongside WorldTour coverage, Ondřej has developed specific expertise in junior cycling and in racing across East Asia, including competitions in China and Japan. He also maintains a broad working knowledge of other disciplines and levels, including cyclocross, while continuing to expand his understanding of mountain bike racing.
Ondřej holds a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and Physics, which supports his analytical, data-driven approach to performance and race analysis. In his reporting, he regularly uses ProCyclingStats for results, statistics, and historical context. He places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles promptly when new, verified information becomes available.
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- Roglic could not have won anyway, after Jonas followed him when Roglic decided it was his turn for a stage win. Jonas had already attacked Kuss twice, so it was Jonas who was within seconds of taking the lead before Kuss was 'gifted' the win. It felt a bit like Roglic was being thrown under the bus when the team made his unhappiness public.Hills3314-11-2026
- POG1, another nice doc about our favourite, I watched most of it with a big smile on my face (except for the bits about his crashes 😢 obvs!).Lozza14-11-2026
- Martinez had a good year! 5th at the Tour was a great result for him, albeit largely through getting in successful breaks, but he held it better than Pidcock who’d done the same.Lozza14-11-2026
- guess what Valgren, you're 34, and no you're not good enough. sorry to say.mij14-11-2026
- I'm a sepp fan and like to think he earned that LOL, indulge me : ) I think Jonas was fine. Roglic did not want to concede to Sepp. and I don't think you ever attack your own teammate in the leaders jersey if he is holding his own, which Sepp just about was.mij14-11-2026
- enough time? he's 24 years old. He's won 10 races over the last 2 years and some are significant. I won't argue about his attitude being good - it needs to improve. But with some coaching and mentorship he has a lot of winning ahead of him and has plenty of time to win a GT. I don't think he will ever beat Tadej, but everyone else is fair game Look at Mas and Valverde - they were 31 and 29, respectively, when they won the Vuelta.mij14-11-2026
- Pogacar has a fine head on his shoulders.Careful investments and a couple of coffee shops sounds like a wonderful way to chill after an intense career.Stay healthy GOAT.
Brucegel14-11-2026 - I live in Maribor.PogiSloFans14-11-2026
- I live in Ljubljana and often go on trips in the surrounding area, where I frequently see young cyclists in 'Pogi Team' jerseys training, either alone or in groups. By simply motivating so many young people to take up cycling, Tadej has already achieved something truly significant.Velijo14-11-2026
- That's an excellent point. It's interesting that Vader came to that realization only after he learned that his contract wasn't going to be renewed.
santiagobenites14-11-2026
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