Time penalty overshadows Roglic’s Vuelta performance: Did actions team Mas lead to 20-second penalty and final climb setback?

Primoz Roglic received a 20-second time penalty during the fifteenth stage of the Vuelta a España. The Slovenian rider (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe) caused a stir with a bike change in the intense finale, all with the aim of attacking the steep final climb of the Cuitu Negru on a lighter gear. He seemed to succeed initially, but then Roglic started to loose some ground and, to make matters worse, received a 20-second penalty for drafting behind a vehicle.

The bike change took place just over 20 kilometers from the finish line. With the foot of the final climb at 18.9 kilometers from the end, it was a striking moment. It quickly became clear that there was a strategy behind it. Roglic calmly got off his bike, received a new one, which had only a single chainring. Returning to the peloton took a bit longer, especially because Enric Mas' Movistar team noticed the delay and decided to increase the pace slightly. Eventually, Roglic made it back, but not without having hung onto a car briefly. The jury took notice, leading to the time penalty.

On the 18.9-kilometer-long final climb, it was Soudal-Quick Step that pushed the pace for Mikel Landa, but as they approached the steepest part of the climb, it was Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe that took the initiative. Florian Lipowitz launched his team leader, and for a moment, it seemed like Roglic was leaving all his competitors in the dust. Early breakaway Aleksandr Vlasov nervously looked back to see if he needed to put in some work, but it never came to that. Roglic appeared to be a bit overconfident and hit the proverbial wall. Mas caught up to him and even passed him, but a final sprint from Roglic brought him back to finish in the same time as the Spaniard.

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Roglic thought he lost time on the red jersey

At the top of the climb, Roglic was clearly surprised (or perhaps a bit cynical?) when asked in an interview with Eurosport if things hadn’t gone as hoped. "How much time did I lose on the red jersey then?" he asked. Then, briefly and matter-of-factly, he added: "It was a good performance after a tough week and a tough day. Mas looked good. He’s riding super strong here. Sometimes you win some, and sometimes you lose some, so I'm happy with this result."