"I simply want to win sprints in the coming years. And preferably as much as possible" - Fabio Jakobsen reminds to trust in the process despite disappointing start to the year

The transfer of Fabio Jakobsen from Soudal - Quick-Step to Team dsm-firmenich PostNL was undeniably one of the biggest move of the past winter. Both sides expected a lot from this deal; Jakobsen an undisputed leadership and full support for sprints, the team hoped for a rider who can consistently deliver big sprint victories. In the regard, we can feel that there is still much left to be desired. After all, the 27-year-old has only one victory to his name in 39 race days in this season.

Understandably, Jakobsen feels responsible for the success of Iwan Spekenbrink's project. "Certainly! Ultimately, that is also the reason why I joined this team. I find my sporting ambitions here. I also know that there is a bit of a magnifying glass on it from the outside world. The preseason went well enough, but not well," he tells in a preview to his interview in the RIDE magazine.

¨¨¨"A good plan has been made, but everyone has had to get used to each other. And I also had to adapt. Compared to the past six years, only the Shimano plates on the bottom of my shoe are the same. We already said in the winter that we would be ready for the Giro d'Italia at the earliest."

The team was not able to show that there. Due to a hard crash in the eleventh stage, Jakobsen retired early without a single result to boast about. He is now focusing on the Tour de France. "It's very cliché, but I simply want to win sprints in the coming years. And preferably as much as possible. I hope to achieve the best possible results here as a sprinter. And these are of course the stages in the grand tours and the one-day races that often end in a sprint."