Primož Roglič (Jumbo-Visma) has reportedly told Slovenian radio he has no intention of going back on his comments about the controversial Vuelta a España stage 16 crash that saw him subsequently abandon the race.
In a lengthy discussion with Radio Slovenia Channel 2 station about his 2022 season, triple Vuelta a España winner Roglic was quoted by interviewer Igor Tominec as saying about the crash: "I still stand by my words."
Roglic did not make it 100 per cent clear in the interview which "words" he was referring to, but his most high-profile public reference to the crash came in a press release for Jumbo-Visma where he roundly blamed British rider Fred Wright (Bahrain Victorious) for the fall.
At the time Roglič said: "The crash was not caused by a bad road or a lack of safety but by a rider’s behaviour."
And in the Slovenian radio interview, responding to Tominec’s observation that he "reacted emotionally like never before after that last crash", Roglič reportedly commented: "I was asking myself if it was necessary to say or write anything. But then in the end why always be silent?
"I just wanted to express that I want to race in an atmosphere of fair play. That was my point.
"I think I had to let it out," he added. "It’s easier for me to return now. Otherwise I might not even want to get back in the peloton."
After the crash, Wright later rejected any criticism, saying: "I think it’s unfair, the team and I have looked at the footage again tonight, and I honestly don’t believe I did anything wrong - it was just a racing incident."
Roglič’s 2022 season was a rollercoaster, with overall victories in Paris-Nice and Critérium de Dauphiné, two races where the 33-year-old had previously crashed badly within sight of the final GC win. However, that was followed by a major fall in the Roubaix stage of the Tour de France. He broke two small bones in his back and much later abandoned the race because of his injuries, but only after providing top support for teammate and future winner Jonas Vingegaard through the Alps, most notably on the crunch stage to the Col du Granon.
Having decided to start the Vuelta a España on just one week’s training as he battled to recover from his Tour injuries, Jumbo-Visma claimed the opening team time trial, then Roglič himself snatched a first-week stage win at Laguardia and, briefly, the overall lead.
Although subsequently distanced by Remco Evenepoel (QuickStep-AlphaVinyl) on the climbs of Asturias and Alicante time trial, later Roglič appeared to be making a rapid, if uneven, bounceback as he clawed back time on the Belgian race leader in the mountains of southern Spain, only for disaster to strike in the closing metres of stage 16.
"The decision to race the Vuelta was only taken at the last moment," Roglič reportedly told Tominec. "It’s obvious that Remco is a great talent and he was definitely better in the first nine days.
"But then I slowly started to come back. We will never know what would have happened if I’d stayed in the race to the end, but I had good feelings and was optimistic."
Transfer talk and 2023 plans
Although Roglič has said that his race program for 2023 remains an incognito, the ringing confirmation of Vingegaard’s GC talents in the Tour de France this year could open up questions regarding his position in the Jumbo-Visma hierarchy and if he could head to the Giro d’Italia.
But Roglič kept a resolutely positive spin on it, saying: "Tough competition always focusses you to become a better version of yourself. My goal is to become even better next year."
Jokingly, he added "We’ve never had a fight. But if we did, I am optimistic, I am a little bigger than him!"
Although there had been rumours that Roglič might be switching teams in 2023, the Slovenian all-but brushed them off, saying: "There’s always speculation, but we all know I have a contract with Team Jumbo-Visma.
“For how many years? Definitely next year and then we’ll see.
"We grew together, me and the team. It didn’t happen overnight. And then you ask yourself, if I change the team, I have to go through this long process again. Where can I go, if I am already on the best team?"
Now on the recovery trail from an off-season bone graft operation on his shoulder, Roglič will be present at Jumbo-Visma’s training camp on December 11th, where a decision will be taken on his and the other top riders’ race programs for 2023.
"I believe one day I will be in the right place at the right time," Roglič concluded. "I broke some so-called curses in France this year in the first half of the season. I’m hoping to break some more.
