Could Visma surprise - New climbing weapon might be used to replace Wout Van Aert at the Tour de France
Cycling
Team Visma | Lease a Bike are currently finalizing their plans for the 2026 Giro d'Italia and there are questions still left to be answered. The main one being who will take Wout Van Aert's place, and that could turn out to be Davide Piganzoli surprisingly.
The team has had to change plans due to the injuries of two riders - two classics specialists, coincidentally. Christophe Laporte suffered a quad injury back in May and so one position had to be filled.
CylingUpToDate analyzed the contenders at the time to fill in the role and the decision was likely to be between Ben Turner, Jorgen Nordhagen and Per Strand Hagenes.
Whilst both climbers showed great form at the Tour Auvergne--Rhône-Alpes, Het Laatste Nieuws reported that it would be Hagenes that would step in. The young Norwegian does not have experience on his side, but has a very strong season and the skillset that is the most similar to Laporte.
Davide Piganzoli during stage 9 of the 2026 Giro d'Italia
Wout Van Aert's injury changes the plans
But another question then surged as Wout Van Aert suffered a training crash before Auvergne. Whilst he still rode to a stage win in the French race, he withdrew from it the day after.
The elbow injury that looked to be a minor inconvenience turned out to be more serious. He required two surgeries to clean the wounds, avoiding serious risk of sepsis. Only this weekend did the Belgian return to the bike.
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Tulett, Nordhagen and... Piganzoli
But Visma had confirmed in the meantime that Van Aert would be in no physical shape to approach the Tour at the necessary level to significantly help the team conquer the yellow jersey with Jonas Vingegaard.
It would be logical that the final position in the lineup would then be decided between Tulett and Nordhagen. But throughout the week another rider has put himself on great display, and might even be the one to be chosen.
That is Davide Piganzoli, and according to Ciro Scognamiglio of Gazzetta dello Sport, 'there could be a spot' for the Italian rider. At the Giro d'Italia the youngster, in his maiden year with Visma, impressed.
Piganzoli finished high in the overall classification whilst on a full domestique role for the Dane, and had very strong results himself. Logic would have it that fatigue would get the best of him, but he showed tremendous form this weekend by winning the queen stage of La Route d'Occitanie by a long margin.
After having taken a small period of rest, the Italian's form is still present, and the team is considering him for a support role at the Grand Boucle - after his and Vingegaard's proximity were more than confirmed throughout the three weeks in Italy.
Rúben SilvaEditor-in-Chief
A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
Beyond editorial work, he has been closely involved in the expansion and coordination of CyclingUpToDate’s wider network, helping establish and support sister platforms across multiple languages. This includes ongoing collaboration with CiclismoAlDia (Spanish), CiclismoAtual (Portuguese), WielrennenUpToDate (Dutch), and RadsportAktuell (German), contributing to a shared editorial vision and consistent international coverage.
He also helps oversee editorial governance across the network, setting standards for accuracy and consistency and coordinating updates or corrections when needed.
Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
Within 18 months of launch, he helped grow CyclingUpToDate’s English-language platform into one of the most-read cycling news websites, built entirely from the ground up. As both a professional journalist and lifelong cycling enthusiast, his focus remains on delivering accurate, timely, and well-contextualized coverage.
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- Oy, don't insult girlsHills3312-11-2026
- lol yeah. this is a good onemij12-11-2026
- Mads is the best: I didn’t even know there were rules in cyclocross. I just thought it was a matter of: ‘Go, three, two, one, ride.’ It’s like a street fight, a kind of underground brawl. It’s the MMA of cycling he gives the best quotes.mij12-11-2026
- he's too young. he's 23, so not really a fair call yet.mij12-11-2026
- and don't forget Pidcock's departure. maybe he will never win a GT, but he knows how to light up a race.mij12-11-2026
- Bingo...I was going to say a 12 year obsessed Pogi fan girlie ! Like she's chasing a teen boy band! All glossy eyed about tadej!frieders312-11-2026
- That stint in the Pink was so good. If memory serves he struggled with the champagne cuz he'd never been on the podium before. I feel like it gave him some self-belief, and yeah - then the move to Visma to be one of their lieutenants has really brought him to the best version of himself.wrsty12-11-2026
- So, you never really compared Paul Seixas with his main rival Isaac Del Toro why jump to Pogačar? They've (Paul & Isaac) raced together here and there, and they've both shared in wins and losses, I think they should be compared to each other, even with Vingegaard and Remco first before even touching Pogačar. From your writing it's like he's better than Vingegaard, Remco and Del Toro already that his main target is now Pogačar 🤔Sadick11-11-2026
- gee i hope its a minor injury. a great rider and ambassador for the sport. get well soon Lucinda.
Davide11-11-2026 - some of lidl-treks retention and recruiting has been puzzling in the mens and womens teams.Davide11-11-2026
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