Every journey has to start somewhere, even for stars like Primož Roglič. And in just two words at the final finish line of the Volta ao Algarve - "Yes, definitely" - the ever-laconic Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe star confirmed he was racing at the level he had anticipated for this point in the year, and brushed away any kind of concern, on his part at least, that his lowkey performance in his first race of the 2025 season had been anywhere below his expectations.
It was true that Roglič had come into the Algarve aiming to do his best on GC: But as the Slovenian veteran had already warned last winter he would not be looking to put on a great performance.
So while it's also true that on many occasions Roglič has claimed to be in terrible form pre-race, only to promptly pulverize the opposition when he actually started racing, on this occasion, he kept to his off-season word, and ended up a respectable, but not particularly earthshattering, eighth overall, 53 seconds down on former teammate Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike)
Eleventh in the final time trial up the Malhao, Roglič told reporters afterwards in a typically succinct interview that while he had made a good effort - "hard but nice" was how he defined his performance on Sunday - overall he was happy with his first race of 2025. Or as he put it, "I enjoyed it a lot and it was nice."
The crucial point, though, was when asked if he was where he wanted to be for this time of year, Roglič confirmed that by saying "Yes, definitely."
"Obviously, I didn't really peak or be at my best here in Algarve," he added. "I really chose it, just [to be] for the start of the season and there's still a lot of work to do. But I'm going in the right direction."
Roglič's next competition will be the Volta a Catalunya, a race the Slovenian won narrowly back in 2023 in a dramatic duel against Remco Evenepoel. And just like in 2023, there are only six weeks between the end of Catalunya and the start of the Giro d'Italia.
The seven-day race through the Pyrenees will be a much more realistic test of Roglič's chances of a repeat success in the Italian Grand Tour, too. Only this time, rather than Evenepoel, it's Vingegaard who will likely be Roglič's main challenger in Catalunya.
