Roglic sees himself in the “perfect scenario”, but isn’t putting all his hopes on the time trial

Primoz Roglic arrives at the last week of La Vuelta in an unusual situation for him. The four-time winner of the race is 2:10 behind an Enric Mas who has so far shown superiority in the mountains. But there is one stage that keeps the Slovenian as a particularly serious threat: the individual time trial of 32.5 kilometers in Jerez.

Mas made it clear during the rest day that he does not intend to face this last week solely focused on the time trial and wants to take advantage of the mountain stages to continue increasing his lead. Roglic, for his part, also does not seem convinced that those 32 kilometers will be enough to turn the classification around.

"They still see me as a threat": Roglic faces the last week 2:10 behind Mas

Roglic's statements come in an interview granted to the MARCA newspaper during the second rest day of La Vuelta. The Slovenian faces the last six days in third place overall, just four seconds behind Felix Gall but, above all, 2:10 behind the red jersey of Enric Mas.

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"They still see me as a threat. They still see me as a rival," Roglic acknowledges. And that situation, far from bothering him, seems to please him.

"I am in a perfect scenario. The place I am in is the right one for me. I accept it, it is like that. That does not mean I will not give my best or that I will not try everything I can."

It is striking coming from a rider who has won La Vuelta four times and who, if he were to come back in Granada, would become the first in history to achieve five victories.

But Roglic arrives this time without the obligation to control the race and with Mas forced to respond to attacks. The Slovenian himself also acknowledges that the level shown by the Mallorcan has surprised him.

"I would like to be as good as him, but I know how I arrived at La Vuelta and how I have faced it. With rehabilitation and preparation, I am not at my best, but I am at a good level. I am very happy. It is probably the best level I have had this season."

Roglic has always been better than Mas against the clock

The concern of Movistar regarding the time trial is not unfounded. Roglic and Mas have faced each other numerous times against the clock during their careers and the balance is completely favorable to the Slovenian.

In La Vuelta 2021, the race ended with an individual time trial of 33.8 kilometers between Padrón and Santiago de Compostela, a distance similar to what they will have to cover now in Jerez. And Roglic arrived in one of the best moments of his career, having been crowned Olympic time trial champion in Tokyo a week earlier. And in Santiago, he again demonstrated his superiority.

He won the stage with a time of 44:02. Mas, who was second in that Vuelta, finished ninth and lost 2:04. The data is particularly interesting four years later because Mas's current lead over Roglic is 2:10. An exact repetition of that time trial would leave the Slovenian just six seconds from the red jersey. But five years have passed and the gap between the two against the clock no longer seems so large.

When they faced each other again over a similar distance in the time trial of the 2025 Tour de France finishing in Caen, Roglic was again better, but the difference was only 1:38. It is still a lot of time and confirms that the Slovenian continues to have a clear advantage in this specialty, but it also shows that using only previous races as a precedent would be too simplistic.

"I don't think" the time trial can change everything

Roglic himself seems to be clear about it. When MARCA directly asked him if the time trial could be enough to turn La Vuelta upside down, his response was much more cautious than one might expect.

"I don't think so. The rivals are going very fast and I am losing time. Every second I can gain before the time trial will be good. There is little time left and a lot at the same time."

It is possibly one of the keys to this last week. Roglic is not approaching the race as a wait until Thursday to then solve everything against the clock. He knows he needs to take advantage of any previous opportunity to reduce the 2:10 that separates him from Mas. And the reason lies in what has happened during the last few days.

Since Mas inherited the leadership after Tadej Pogacar's withdrawal, the Movistar rider has not stopped increasing his lead. In Calar Alto, he distanced Roglic again and in La Pandera, the Slovenian lost another 25 seconds, also losing second place to Gall. Mas has been stronger so far when the road has inclined, and that forces Roglic to find another way to get closer.

"Every second I can gain before the time trial will be good," he insists.

Roglic does not rule out going all in, but it seems difficult

The other unknown is how far the Slovenian is willing to risk. With four Vueltas in his palmarès and a fifth victory that would mean an absolute record, simply defending a place on the podium might hold less value for him than for other riders.

When asked about the possibility of launching a distant move even at the risk of jeopardizing his current position, Roglic did not close the door either.

"If you have the legs, of course, why not? If you don't have them, it's hard to do anything. Even to move. I am optimistic about the stages we have ahead."

Although the truth is that the Slovenian would have to improve a lot to find such a state of form from now until Saturday in Granada.

The scenario has changed compared to other seasons. This time it is Roglic who has to attack and Mas who has the margin.

"They are fighting for their first victories. The situation is different," explains the Slovenian about Mas and Gall.

Even so, he does not plan to give up. "I have to keep doing what I do, not give up. Day after day I put everything I have. Then, the situation and the rivals will say what my situation is at each moment. I have to insist."

There are still six days left, a 32.5-kilometer time trial, and enough terrain for neither to consider La Vuelta settled.