Teams & Riders Everybody needs a little bit of Roglstomp in their lives

[memyselfandI]

When I open up the forum I like to browse this and the Remco discussion as sort of a pair.

On one hand, the Evenepoel thread, a mixture of panic and doomerism. Something hasn't gone right, who is at fault here, an inquest from the Belgian media into his team and preperation, he's ill-advised, maybe Roger De Vlamenickickcnk going crazy, a Lefevere column after 3 bottles of wine.

Opened up this and 'yep I think the sensations are good' 'on a promising trajectory', people posting a few clips of their favourite 'Roglic moments', maybe a picture of him riding around in public somewhere waving at a fan.

Evenepoel has 14 race wins since Roglic's last.

Well it's statistically very possible between Evenepoel and Rogla that performance and results curves cut each other somewhere as there is 10 years difference in them ages, no? Roglic still has what twenty some wins margin over Evenepoel and two more pro road seasons done. Actually they're quite the same wood these two. Impressive palmares both of them. Maybe one handles ski jumping basics better and the other one soccer basics..

 

[Sciatic]

Well it's statistically very possible between Evenepoel and Rogla that performance and results curves cut each other somewhere as there is 10 years difference in them ages, no? Roglic still has what twenty some wins margin over Evenepoel and two more pro road seasons done. Actually they're quite the same wood these two. Impressive palmares both of them. Maybe one handles ski jumping basics better and the other one soccer basics..

Obviously wins and losses don’t solely determine which riders or teams have bigger fan bases (or enthusiasts in this forum).

 

[CyclistAbi]

It's hanging on a thin balance I think.. I mean when you look at Roglic and listen his interviews it's hard to say is he done with motivation or is it lack of performance against younger athletes. Or both.

Or neither out of that options.

I think Rogla will end his career after this season.

And to do what?

I say over and over that trying to designate him as a captain, a leader is flawed

Indeed, it must come naturally.

At 36 what is left in the tank?

At 36 one still has a lot left in the tank.

Evenepoel has 14 race wins since Roglic's last.

Damn, we have to do something about that one then ASAP.

@CyclistAbi boosts the spirit of this thread. Mark my words: Rogla will lead the team at the Tour.

If offered co-leadership then yes, otherwise IMHO better to focus on Vuelta exclusively.

De campeones a exploradores: Roglic, Cañizares, Jordan, Bolt… y ahora Jacquelin, los cracks que cambiaron de deporte

Jacquelin se sube al ciclismo sin dejar el biatlón y se suma a una lista de deportistas que probaron suerte lejos de su disciplina original

www.marca.com

So is Rogla the most successful athlete in his second sport in history of sports? Just imagine if he would retire.

 

[ftm]

When I open up the forum I like to browse this and the Remco discussion as sort of a pair.

On one hand, the Evenepoel thread, a mixture of panic and doomerism. Something hasn't gone right, who is at fault here, an inquest from the Belgian media into his team and preperation, he's ill-advised, maybe Roger De Vlamenickickcnk going crazy, a Lefevere column after 3 bottles of wine.

Opened up this and 'yep I think the sensations are good' 'on a promising trajectory', people posting a few clips of their favourite 'Roglic moments', maybe a picture of him riding around in public somewhere waving at a fan.

Evenepoel has 14 race wins since Roglic's last.

Let's be fair to the guy, he's ancient but still comfortably around Top 5 while declining (and/or taking a slower approach to the season, we'll see which one it is).

If you've read my recent post you'll know that I am certain that the end is near, that he's been on a slow but steady downward slope since he joined RBH and that there is no coming back once last year's subpar performances have bled into this year without any known issues that might explain them, BUT let's not forget what the guy has done, he essentially jumped on a bike one day and a few days later was a top WT rider that has racked a thousand wins whereas all the other aliens and semi-aliens, including the ex-footballer, went through the ranks for many years to learn the ropes. What Roglic has done in such a short career is impressive, he deserves the respect and the accolades instead of scorn and mockery if he can't at almost 37 compete with riders that are almost as young as his own kids.

 

[CyclistAbi]

last year's subpar performances have bled into this year without any known issues that might explain them

I feel that Giro crash fest explains it pretty well.

 

[ftm]

I feel that Giro crash fest explains it pretty well.

How does a crash that happened almost a year ago explain his lack of punch and overall lower level in Tirreno and Milano-Torino?

His level hasn't dropped exaggeratedly so there is no reason to believe there is anything wrong with him in terms of still recovering from that Giro crash (no injuries that we know of) or any recent or past illness. Most rational conclusion is that his current shape has absolutely nothing to do with whatever happened last year.

In my opinion both he and the team believed in the "being better in the 2nd GT" pattern, after all that's what he was used to, regardless of how well (or badly) he ended the first GT. We all know how he's crashed out of Tours and went on to win Vueltas despite imperfect preparation, so what changed last year? I don't think that the Giro crashes were worse or particularly disruptive, I believe that the Giro - Tour combo was the issue and that he would've struggled even if he finished the Giro in one piece. That was the unknown (and risky!) variable in the 2 GTs per season pattern, and the crashes made it even more obvious.

But again, what does it have to do with the last half of his '25 season and the start of this year's? He went to altitude and underperformed twice, when he used to come down from the volcano flying.

So these two patterns (2 GTs a season with the second one being his best, achieving his top level after altitude training) have been disrupted despite them believing and expecting that they were going to work. To me the only explanation is that his body, due to age and/or all the injuries and recoveries, has had enough and does not respond as expected.

 

[Netserk]

how you exit one season affects the next

and as his singular big target this year is the vuelta , his build up will reflect that

 

[pablohidalgo7]

I feel that debuting late in March is more difficult than usual with the current level of competition, especially for older cyclists. Everyone who finished ahead of him in Tirreno had serious races under their belts this season. He himself said afterward that he thinks he should have raced before, and the truth is that in Milano-Torino, even though he lost, he looked much less rusty.

Obviously, I think his intention was to contest the victory, and he was coming from altitude, unlike in the Algarve last year. But the days when he could arrive from Teide and automatically beat top-level riders with 5 or 10 days of racing in his legs are gone.

We'll see if this theory holds true in Itzulia and if he's significantly better. After all, it's something that has happened to him in previous seasons, even when he was younger.

 

[Red Rick]

Everything down to talking about Evenepoel joing Red Bull being good so that it takes pressure off him, not racing the Giro even if Red Bull would have been okay with that, suggests he was burnt out and is happy to take this season a little slower at the start.

 

[CyclistAbi]

How does a crash that happened almost a year ago explain his lack of punch and overall lower level in Tirreno and Milano-Torino?

His level hasn't dropped exaggeratedly so there is no reason to believe there is anything wrong with him in terms of still recovering from that Giro crash (no injuries that we know of) or any recent or past illness. Most rational conclusion is that his current shape has absolutely nothing to do with whatever happened last year.

We are jumping a bit here in between two seasons so best if we split them apparat. First thing to ask is on what do you reckon would be the results in the 2025 season if not for the Giro crash fest? I feel it's safe to assume Giro-Tour results would be rather good in terms of final results. Lets not forget that regardless of non optimal preparation even at the Tour top 5 was achievable, but considering Lipo was third Rogla choose to rather pursue a stage win. Unfortunately UAE drilled it a bit too much and on other occasion Jonas was too much triggered. So in the end top 10 was it.

All in all, results vice, season 2025 could have easily turn out much better if circumstances would be slightly different in terms of health.

As for season 2026 and MT. If the team would bring Rogla in such position on Superga for the second time as they did on the first climb then Rogla would have had a much better chance of beating Pidcock and lets not forget Pidcock almost won MS.

In my opinion both he and the team believed in the "being better in the 2nd GT" pattern, after all that's what he was used to, regardless of how well (or badly) he ended the first GT.

Rogla won Giro and most of his firsts GTs was affected by crashes so IMHO it was never really about form but health.

 

[AmRacer]

We are jumping a bit here in between two seasons so best if we split them apparat. First thing to ask is on what do you reckon would be the results in the 2025 season if not for the Giro crash fest? I feel it's safe to assume Giro-Tour results would be rather good in terms of final results. Lets not forget that regardless of non optimal preparation even at the Tour top 5 was achievable, but considering Lipo was third Rogla choose to rather pursue a stage win. Unfortunately UAE drilled it a bit too much and on other occasion Jonas was too much triggered. So in the end top 10 was it.

All in all, results vice, season 2025 could have easily turn out much better if circumstances would be slightly different in terms of health.

As for season 2026 and MT. If the team would bring Rogla in such position on Superga for the second time as they did on the first climb then Rogla would have had a much better chance of beating Pidcock and lets not forget Pidcock almost won MS.



Rogla won Giro and most of his firsts GTs was affected by crashes so IMHO it was never really about form but health.

For Rogla, his greatest victory 2025 was to see Paris again. The welcome he received from the audience 😀