Primoz Roglic does not betray the predictions that gave him a great favorite in the Pau time trial: the Slovenian wins and conquers the red jersey but what is surprising are the gaps that the former ski jumper who switched to cycling at an already advanced age inflicted on his rivals direct:: Nairo Quintana, the former classification leader, gave him more than three minutes, Miguel Angel Lopez more than two minutes, Alejandro Valverde defended himself better than the two Colombians, limiting the gap from the unleashed Slovenian to 1'38” Jumbo-Visma.
In just 36,2 km of the Pau Roglic time trial he overturned the course of this Vuelta in his favor, upsetting a classification that now sees him in the lead with 1'52” over Valverde, 2'11” over Lopez and 3 minutes over Quintana. Tadej Pogacar, the talented young Slovenian winner of the Cortals d'Encamp stage, also defended his fifth place, catching up on all the big names, with the obvious exception of Roglic who distanced him by 1'29”. The history of many stage races tells us that often more than the mountains it was the time trials that decided the final victory.
Many turn up their noses because the epic of cycling can be enjoyed and experienced on the bends of passes that have become legendary. But when, as happened yesterday, Roglic hooks up and overtakes Lopez on the finish line who started two minutes before him, even the time trial becomes a show, rewarding the athlete who knows how to express the greatest speed and power by running alone. Now Roglic, with the rich treasure he has created with the time trial, is the most popular favorite to win the Vuelta even if before the arrival in Madrid there are still many stages to go with many mountains to climb.
Lopez and Quintana are certainly stronger than the Slovenian when the road rears up. Valverde is the timeless champion who hasn't raced a Vuelta at these levels for some time: it will be interesting to see what tactics Movistar will adopt now that the world champion, second in the standings, has overtaken Quintana, who moreover no longer seems to enjoy great sympathy in the area of the Spanish team, given that he will leave it at the end of the year to settle at Arkea-Samsic.
