Primož Roglič to add Ardennes campaign to pre-Tour de France race schedule

Red Bull branding and major sponsorship to be worn at the Tour this summer

14:48, Friday 8th March 2024

Daniel Benson

Editor in Chief

Share

Primož Roglič is making his season and Bora-Hansgrohe debut at Paris-Nice this week

Primož Roglič (Bora-Hansgrohe) has provisionally added both La Flèche Wallonne and Liège-Bastogne-Liège to his race programme for 2024.

The Slovenian’s race schedule at the start of the year avoided any one-day races in his build-up towards the Tour de France with just the Itzulia Basque Country and the Critérium du Dauphiné on his initial plan.

However, GCN has learned that the 34-year-old will race the second and third races in the Ardennes Classics in April, only skipping Amstel Gold Race, with altitude camps on either side of his spring plans.

This news follows further developments surrounding the involvement of Red Bull as a major partner with the team. Reports in Cyclingnews and La Gazzetta dello Sport indicate the brand will be the main sponsor in line for the Tour de France. Red Bull became the 51% owner of the team in January of this year.

GCN understands that the team name will change for the Tour this summer but it remains unclear as to whether Red Bull or Bora-Hansgrohe will be the lead sponsor of the men’s WorldTour squad.

What’s certain is that Bora-Hansgrohe will remain as part of the team’s branding and sponsorship plans having signed on until the end of the 2027 season. Bora-Hansgrohe would not officially comment on the potential team name change when contacted by GCN.

However, a source close to the team did state that changes were coming ahead of the Tour.

“Yes, there will be a new kit, and new branding but Bora-Hansgrohe remains a title sponsor until 2027. It’s an in-conjunction situation,” the source told GCN.

Back in January, team boss Ralph Denk announced that changes to the operation would take place. The fact that the team name and branding might change ahead of the biggest race of the year, where global visibility will be at its highest, is an obvious step in that process.

“Everyone in cycling knows how important the basics and preparation are for success. So, we are now taking this step with the necessary consideration and resolution. We will present the further details of our partnership in the course of the season,” Denk said.