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Putting an end to speculation, BORA-Hansgrohe owner and founder Ralph Denk confirmed Primož Roglič will join the German team for 2024 and beyond.
Finishing his Jumbo-Visma contract early, Roglič will join Australian Jai Hindley (2022 Giro d'Italia winner, and yellow jersey wearer at the 2023 Tour de France), along with Cian Uijtdebroeks, and Alexander Vlasov as BORA-Hansgrohe's Grand Tour contenders. These riders will make formidable teammates in support of Roglič’s own aspirations to win the only Grand Tour he hasn’t already claimed - the Tour de France.
Arriving at the same time as news of the Jumbo-Visma and Soudal-QuickStep “mega-merger” being cancelled, it appears that Roglič, Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates), Jonas Vingegaard (Jumbo Visma), and Remco Evenepoel (Soudal-QuickStep) may all race for the Tour de France overall general classification title on rival teams - an exciting prospect for riders and fans alike.
“To win the Tour (de France) is a dream for me personally, and this was the chance to take one of the biggest contenders,” Denk said.
“We are realistic. He’s not the only contender. We need luck, a super strong team, an outstanding performance from Primož, but it’s already nice for me and the whole team to be a real contender.”
"I am looking forward to this step, even though a team change is kind of like new territory for me,” Roglič said.
“The good memories of when we met years ago made the talks easy,” Roglič added.
“But the decisive factor was that the team is really motivated to work with me and that we hold the same ideas."
Roglič almost joined BORA-Hansgrohe in 2016 when making the switch from ski-jumping to professional cycling but was outbid by Jumbo-Visma. He has since won four Grand Tour titles (consecutive La Vuelta victories in 2019, 2020 and 2021 and this year's Giro d’Italia) among a string of other palmeres.
Conversations about Roglič's move to BORA-Hansgrohe in 2024 came after reported tension over leadership in Jumbo-Visma team in the 2023 Vuelta a Espana, as well as early murmurs about the Jumbo-Soudal merger.
“I heard the rumours of the possible merger in the final week of the Vuelta,” Denk said. “I listened in detail to the interviews of Primož, and as far as I could find out, he was not happy anymore.
"It’s understandable, with Jumbo-Visma looking forward with leadership for Jonas Vingegaard - he’s younger and a two-time Tour de France champion. On the other hand, Primož was not really happy with how things were run in the Vuelta.
“I asked him, he was open to talking, and from the Vuelta onwards things went quite quickly, and we were able to achieve yesterday the final signature,” Denk said.
It appears that Roglič's coach Marc Lamberts will also join the Slovenian star rider at BORA-Hansgrohe, but this is as yet unconfirmed.
"For us, the decisive factor was not what has been achieved, but what lies ahead," Denk said.
"Together we want to leave our mark on the big races. Primož appreciates the strength of our squad and knows the great potential of his future teammates.
“I am convinced that his personality will inspire the entire team, because he is a leader with the will to win, and is also a team player at the same time. Most of all, however, he really loves what he does and for me, that is the key to success."
While Denk’s 2016 offer was outbid by Jumbo-Visma when Roglič was a neo-pro, the 2024 signing signals an exciting new chapter for Roglič and the BORA-Hansgrohe team.
“In my office, I found that offer again, and this offer [now] is definitely bigger,” Denk said. “I can tell you that if you add another zero to the offer, it’s still not enough.”
It’s rumoured that the signing included a buyout fee of three million euros paid to Jumbo-Visma, while Roglič's new contract, believed to be a two-year deal, will pay over five million euros per season.
