A last stage to finish it off for Roglic

June 9 ^th 2024 - 05:13

Last stages were not always ideal for Primoz Roglic, who lost the Dauphiné on the last day in 2020 and Paris-Nice in 2021. But those days are over now for the Slovenian, who since won the Criterium in 2022 and the Race to the Sun the same year. And with his 1:02 lead over white jersey holder Matteo Jorgenson and 1:13 over Canada’s Derek Gee, the Slovenian can be rather confident to clinch his second overall victory in the event at Plateau des Glieres.

The main question mark is almost whether he will be going for a hat-trick of mountain stages in this Dauphiné or whether the Bora-Hansgrohe leader will leave the day’s laurels to somebody else. The list of candidates in this other hard stage, with its three first category climbs and its 3,830 metres of elevation, is a long one.

Breakaways could be a long time coming with the first summit, Col de la Forclaz-de-Montmin, so early in the stage at Km 14.2, but riders like Warren Barguil, Lorenzo Fortunato, Valentin Madouas, Guillaume Martin, Manus Cort and Tim Wellens or another UAE rider could be interested in joining in. But if the stage should again turn into a GC battle in the last climb, Giulio Ciccone (Lidl-Trek) has been among the most active in finals, as well as Derek Gee and Matteo Jorgenson, unless Primoz Roglic decides to help team-mate Alex Vlasov end on a high note.”