Primoz Roglic to start La Vuelta after four-time champion recovers from training crash injuries
Published 18/08/2026 at 10:21 GMT+1
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Primoz Roglic will start at La Vuelta on Saturday after recovering from the injuries he sustained in a crash in training last month. The 36-year-old was hit by a car and missed both the Clasica San Sebastian and Vuelta a Burgos as a result.
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There had been doubts that the four-time La Vuelta winner would be ready for the first stage in Monaco on Saturday - live on TNT Sports and HBO Max - but his participation has been confirmed by his team.
La Gazzetta dello Sport reported on Sunday that Roglic (Red Bull-Bora-hansgrohe) was "feeling better" after sustaining significant bruising on his right leg, but claimed he will not have "any ambitions for the overall standings".
The report added that the Slovenian, who is tied with Roberto Heras for the most Vuelta victories, will "ride day by day" and hope to achieve the best possible results.
Roglic last raced at the Slovenian national championships in late June, winning the time trial and finishing fourth in the road race.
He intended to ride the Clasica San Sebastian and Vuelta a Burgos as preparation for the Vuelta, having prepared at an altitude camp in Sierra Nevada.
Those plans were disrupted and the Red Bull rider will likely go into the next Grand Tour below full capacity.
Roglic was named in Red Bull's eight-strong line-up on Tuesday, alongside Finn Fisher-Black, Jordi Meeus, Gianni Moscon, Callum Thornley, Luke Tuckwell, Gianni Vermeersch and Frederik Wandahl.
Any aspirations of a record fifth triumph will be difficult, particularly given Tadej Pogacar is competing for the first time in seven years.
Roglic, who won the Giro d'Italia in 2023 and finished second to Pogacar at the 2020 Tour de France, would typically have been amongst the favourites to win another Vuelta.
But it remains to be seen if he will be able to cope with the demands of the race, which concludes in Granada on September 13.
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Pogacar, meanwhile, will be the clear frontrunner as he looks to complete his Grand Tour collection.
"I’m excited to say I’m going back to La Vuelta," the five-time Tour de France winner said earlier this month.
"It was my first ever Grand Tour back in 2019 and an amazing experience. Spain is a country I love to visit and race in and I think the time is right to go back.
"The motivation is high to finish off the year in a good way and the Vuelta will be a big target. The team is strong and we hope to do good things."
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