‘I’m in a perfect scenario’ - Roglic eyes Vuelta comeback against Enric Mas

The Slovenian is not talking like a rider who believes the Vuelta a España is slipping away.

“I’m in a perfect scenario,” Roglič told MARCA on the second rest day. “The place where I am is the right one for me. I accept it, that’s how it is.”

“That doesn’t mean I’m not going to give my best or try everything I can. We will see what that means compared to the others.”

It is quite a turnaround for Roglič. Only days before the start of the Vuelta, he was struggling to walk after injury. Now he is preparing for a final week in which a fifth overall victory remains possible.

No rider has ever won the Vuelta five times. Roglič currently shares the all time record of four overall victories with Roberto Heras.

That history still carries weight inside the peloton. “They still see me as a threat,” Roglič said. “They still see me as a rival. But we’ll see. We’re entering the final week and a lot can still happen.”

As for Mas and Felix Gall, Roglič insisted neither is occupying too much of his attention.

“Nobody, really. I have to do my own race,” he said.

“In the end, I’m not fighting to win for the first time. I think they are fighting for their first victories. It’s a different situation. We’ll see what opportunities the race brings.”

The time trial remains one of Roglič’s clearest opportunities to take time back, but he does not expect it to decide the Vuelta on its own. With difficult mountain stages still to come afterwards, the Slovenian knows he will need to make the most of every opportunity.

“I don’t think so,” he said when asked whether the time trial alone could turn the race around.

“The others are going very fast and I’m losing time. Every second I can gain before the time trial will be good. There is little left, but at the same time there is still a lot.”

One of the riders setting that pace is Mas, whose level has caught Roglič’s attention.

“Yes, he has surprised me,” he said. “I would like to be as good as he is, but I know how I arrived at the Vuelta and how I approached it.”

“With the rehabilitation and the preparation, I’m not at my best, but I’m at a good level. I’m very happy. It’s probably the best level I’ve had this season.”

That is a considerable improvement from where Roglič found himself shortly before the start of the race, when his participation was still surrounded by uncertainty.

He is reluctant, however, to put a number on his current condition.

“I don’t want to say I’m at 80 per cent, 50 per cent or 10 per cent, or whether I’m going up or down,” he said. “We’ll see.”

The final week still offers several opportunities for the race to change, with some of the Vuelta’s toughest stages coming after the time trial. Roglič appears willing to use every chance that comes his way.

Asked whether he would prefer a controlled race or a chaotic one, he said the answer was simple.

“When you have good legs, everything suits you, whether the race is crazy or controlled.”

“I continue in the same way. Day after day I really put everything I have into it. I don’t look too much at the other scenarios.”

That may eventually leave Roglič with a decision to make over whether protecting a podium place matters less than trying to win the race.

On the possibility of a long range attack, Roglič did not rule anything out.

“It’s difficult to say,” he said. “If you have the legs, of course, why not? If you don’t have them, it’s difficult to do anything. Even to move.”

“I’m optimistic about the stages we have ahead of us.”

His focus remains firmly on the Vuelta, with questions over what comes next left for another day. Roglič refused to engage with speculation linking him with several teams and was equally reluctant to discuss how long he intends to continue racing.

On how many years he might have left in the peloton, the 36-year-old offered a typically dry response.

“One fewer every day, no?”

A return to the Vuelta next year is not something Roglič is ready to guarantee either.

“The first important thing would be to finish this Vuelta. That would already be good,” he said. “As for the rest, we’ll see. But it could be that we see each other again.”

Mas still holds the advantage, but Roglič knows better than most how quickly the Vuelta can change.

Six stages remain, and for the four time winner, there is still plenty of road left to make his “perfect scenario” count.