We're finally here. After over a week of crashes, wet weather and technical finishes, stage nine's time trial of the Giro d'Italia on Saturday marks the point where the GC battle really begins to hot up.
It's true that Tom Dumoulin (Team Sunweb) has already gone home injured, that some top names like Mikel Landa (Movistar) are already on the backfoot and that Bologna's opening short time trial saw Primož Roglič (Jumbo-Visma) unexpectedly gain a bigger-than-expected time gap over all his other GC rivals.
But whilst Dumoulin's absence can only be regretted in a 3,000 kilometre Grand Tour, fortunately there is only so much damage that can be inflicted in eight kilometres of time trialling. Which means Roglič's opening stage victory in Bologna, no matter how impressive – and impressive it was – remains more of a symbolic triumph than a real one.
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The million dollar question for Sunday then, is whether Roglič can multiply his ominously large time gap from such a short course into something that really counts long-term, time-wise, on stage nine's much more demanding 'race of truth'. Or whether a week of fraught, wet racing will have narrowed the natural advantage of the Giro's better time triallists, like Roglič, over their GC rivals.
It's fair to say that, during the Bologna time trial, Roglič was in a class of his own, particularly given that he won the time trial at the Tour de Romandie as well and has an extensive track record of TT wins. So with no Tom Dumoulin (Team Sunweb), the Slovenian has become the natural reference point on the 34.8 kilometre hilly time trial into San Marino, which ends with a second category climb. But will Roglič be able to continue to widen his advantage?
"Primož will disappoint me if he doesn't win again," Belgian TT specialist Victor Campenaerts (Lotto-Soudal) told a small group of journalists, including Cyclingnews, on Saturday.
A time trial of two halves
Time gaps
You can read more at Cyclingnews.com
via Cyclingnews Latest Interviews and Features http://www.cyclingnews.com/features/roglic-will-kill-them-giro-ditalia-time-trial-preview
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