"His facial expression was priceless" - Richard Plugge recalls telling Patrick Lefevere of Jumbo-Visma's plans to take Roglic & Vingegaard to the Vuelta
Cycling
For the Jumbo-Visma team, the possibility of claiming a historic Grand Tour hat-trick looms large over the upcoming Vuelta a Espana. As such Richard Plugge has decided to send both Primoz Roglic and Jonas Vingegaard to the race.
Speaking to Het Nieuwsblad, Plugge recalled how he personally told Soudal - Quick-Step boss Patrick Lefevere of his plans for the race, much to the shock and horror of the Belgian, who's rider Remco Evenepoel will be hoping to defend his title from 2022.
"We are going to try this with our two kings," Plugge explains. "I had the pleasure of personally telling Patrick Lefevere that both of them will start. He asked me: Who are you going to La Vuelta with? With Primoz? To which I replied: And with Jonas. Well, his facial expression was priceless.”
As mentioned, a victory for either Vingegaard or Roglic would see Jumbo-Visma become the first team to complete the incredible achievement of winning all three Grand Tours in a calendar year after Roglic's Giro d'Italia success and Vingegaard emerging victorious at the recent Tour de France.
Kieran WoodDeputy Editor-in-Chief
Kieran Wood is a sports journalist based in Wales and has been active in journalism since 2022. He regularly contributes to DartsNews.com and CyclingUpToDate.com, where he covers professional cycling and darts. In cycling, his work includes liveblogs from major races, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España, alongside race reports and analysis. He has also conducted interviews with professional riders.
His reporting spans the full racing calendar, from one-day classics to stage races, with a focus on accurate, real-time coverage and clear contextual analysis. For statistics, results, and historical context, he regularly uses resources such as ProCyclingStats. To support reporting on rider activity and training context where relevant, he also references Strava.
In his work, Kieran places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles as new, verified information becomes available.
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