Primoz Roglič’s (Pink Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) rollercoaster Vuelta a España confirmed no signal of letting up on Sunday because the Slovenian star failed to provide the broadly anticipated assaults on the hardest mountain stage of the race so far.
Simply 24 hours earlier Roglič had turned in a blizzard of uphill assaults on stage 8 to Cazorla to say his second summit end win and pull again almost a full minute on race chief Ben O’Connor (Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale).
However quite than proceed the place he left off, in Granada’s way more difficult terrain, Roglič not solely did not drop O’Connor however he didn’t reply when GC risk Enric Mas (Movistar) charged away on the crunch climb of Alto de Hazallanas.
Mas’ transfer was reeled in on the lengthy, quick descent again into Granada and the end, however the Slovenian defined later that his lingering again damage from his Tour de France crash had given him issues, and that above all “I didn’t have the legs”.
When it was put to the triple Vuelta a España winner that his surprising passive function on Hazallanas had been a surefire signal he was struggling, staying close to the again of the half-dozen chasing group behind lone breakaway Adam Yates (UAE Staff Emirates), Roglič was fast to agree.
“Undoubtedly. I’d actually had a tough time,” he mentioned. “I’m simply completely happy that it’s completed and that it’s a relaxation day tomorrow.”
The Pink Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe chief was non-committal in regards to the dangers of letting Adam Yates (UAE Staff Emirates), a GC risk, regain a lot time.
“I don’t know all the outcomes, so it’s exhausting to remark the whole lot, who’s the place, what’s the place,” he mentioned. “I additionally don’t know the place I completed. I simply need to quiet down and take some drinks.”
Roglič’s uncertainty in regards to the GC state of affairs will doubtless be resolved when he sees on the outcomes sheet that he remained in second general, 3:53 down on O’Connor, who pulled again 4 seconds by sprinting for third in Granada. Roglič even wore the mountains classification jersey on stage 9, however misplaced it to Adam Yates ultimately.
However the larger query marks about his underlying situation, simply after they have been on the purpose of evaporating after his blisteringly sturdy efficiency in Cazorla, have as soon as once more expanded to surprising ranges. Relatively than regain time on O’Connor, the gaps remained steady within the Sierra Nevada stage. If Sepp Kuss (Visma-Lease a Bike) misplaced but extra floor and João Almeida (UAE Staff Emirates) deserted altogether, different GC challengers like Yates and Richard Carapaz (EF Training-EasyPost) moved again in the other way, and quick.
There are nonetheless two weeks of the Vuelta left to go, however Roglič was unable to do what had been broadly anticipated and put the race out of attain in Sierra Nevada. What occurs from hereon, then, is anybody’s guess, and what Roglic can lastly obtain stays equally unsure.
Get limitless entry to all of our protection of the 2024 Vuelta a España – together with breaking information and evaluation reported by our journalists on the bottom from each stage because it occurs and extra. Discover out extra.
