"I never want to be leader in a Grand Tour again!" - Visma's All-In documentary sheds new light on Vuelta infighting between Kuss, Vingegaard & Roglic

Jumbo-Visma completed their historic Grand Tour hat-trick at the 2023 Vuelta a Espana as Sepp Kuss secured the biggest win of his career. This wasn't without controversy however.

Prior to the race, Primoz Roglic was the expected leader of the team although a late addition of Jonas Vingegaard to the lineup meant Visma had a two-pronged attack in the fight for the Red Jersey. When Kuss worked his way into the breakaway on stage 6 though, taking the win and moving into the overall lead of the race two stages later, the team was thrown into chaos as three riders all considered themselves the leader. In the new, Amazon Prime documentary about Jumbo-Visma's 2023, dropping on March 16th, a whole new light is shone on the situation.

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"I have been honest. I said I wanted to win. And that meant I would attack," says Jonas Vingegaard in an emergency team meeting after Remco Evenepoel's implosion on the Tourmalet meant the three Visma riders had the podium for themselves.

With Evenepoel gone from the GC fight and the likes of Juan Ayuso and Enric Mas some distance away, Kuss suddenly found himself only being attacked by his teammates. The two men he had selflessly sacrificed for so many times over the years. "I was confused. This was rivalry and politics going over my head," Kuss recalls in the documentary, noting how Mikel Landa even offered to be a domestique for him if Roglic and Vingegaard continued to attack. "I'm very grateful to Mikel. He can drink beer at my expense for the rest of his life."

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Even in the Visma team car things were getting tense. "Is this what we agreed?" sports director Grischa Niermann questions before finally a cease-fire is demanded and it's agreed that the American will lead the team in the final stages. "We are not attacking each other anymore," Merijn Zeeman says to bring the matter to a conclusion.

Whilst victory did eventually go to Kuss and he took his first Grand Tour win of his career, there were mixed emotions for him afterwards. "Never again in my life," he says frustratedly. "I never want to be leader in a Grand Tour again!"

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