Roglic maintains sense of humor after time trial: "A bad sign that I was the first of the favorites to start"

Primoz held his ground well in the first time trial of the Tour de France, keeping his sights on the final podium. The leader of Redbull-BORA hansgrohe finished in third place, 34 seconds behind winner Remco Evenepoel. The difference with Tadej Pogacar was 22 seconds, and the Slovenian even gained 3 seconds on his former teammate Jonas Vingegaard.

"I’m tired. I wanted to go faster, but I gave it everything I had. So I can be optimistic. It’s been a long time since I’ve ridden such a tough seventh stage of the Tour," jokes Roglic, who continues to deliver some humor. "It wasn’t a good sign that I had to start first among the favorites, because that means they are a bit better. But I’m happy with this and it makes me optimistic. I’m looking ahead," he concludes his brief reaction.

Team leader Rolf Aldag expressed satisfaction with his leader’s performance after the race. "We can be satisfied with Primoz’s performance. He kept the time gap (with Evenepoel and Pogacar, ed.) within a reasonable margin. He was 120 percent committed. You can’t go down the descent faster than he did. That was excellent. In the end, the world champion won, but he is the world champion for a reason," said Aldag.

With Vlasov, Redbull-BORA hansgrohe has another rider in the top ten

In the general classification, Roglic moved up one position. He passed Juan Ayuso (UAE Team Emirates) and is now fourth, 1 minute and 36 seconds behind yellow jersey Pogacar. The gap to the third-placed Vingegaard is a bridgeable 21 seconds. Also representing Redbull-BORA hansgrohe, Alexander Vlasov also rode a good time trial. The Russian, who finished eleventh in the results, climbed four positions and is now in tenth place in the standings, 4 minutes and 36 seconds behind Pogacar. The third Redbull rider in the standings, Jai Hindley, is just in the top twenty (19th) and is already facing a deficit of over six minutes.

On Saturday, the Tour peloton heads to Colombey-les-Deux-Eglises for a hilly stage. The route constantly winds up and down, and the finishing straight is also a steep climb, making it a stage best suited for the punchers. The general classification riders like Roglic will mainly focus on Sunday’s stage. Then the riders will face several gravel sections, with the threat of punctures or other mechanical failures.