"In the mountain stages I’ll see what I can do" - Sepp Kuss wants to get in on Visma's Vuelta stage raid in final days of the race
Cycling
Sepp Kuss wants a piece of Visma's Vuelta pie as the team feast on stage wins, taking a stunning seven of the 17 stages offered up to the peloton so far. With four more stages on the menu, the American thinks the team aren't quite full yet and could order up a few more to the table.
Matthew Brennan has won five stages and Wout van Aert has taken two, with Wednesday's sprint finish in Seville cleaned up by Brennan after van Aert worked hard to keep the race together in the final kilometer and allow the young British rider to finish it off.
The race has seen the experienced Paris Roubaix winner often work in service of Brennan and the youngster return the favour, with both using their unique threats to give the Dutch team optimal chances of stage success - particularly in days that included multiple short or less steep climbs before a relatively flat finish.
Sepp Kuss on the other hand has kept tabs on the general classification battle. Although suffering a crash back in the first week, he has maintained a steady position and sits in 10th. Although not yet showing his own hand for glory, Kuss opened up on the team's winning atmosphere and Brennan on Wednesday.
Wout van Aert and Matthew Brennan at the 2026 Vuelta a Espana
Sepp Kuss hails Matthew Brennan after another win
“It’s really cool,” Kuss told Eurosport in Seville. “To have most of them coming from a guy that is in his first Grand Tour.”
“He’s really calm. He never gets tired. He goes uphill well, he sprints well. He’s just a big talent. And he likes to race his bike. You can see that in the way he rides.”
Cycling is a team sport, and Kuss was quick to point out the work of domestiques such as Bruno Armirail, Steven Kruijswijk and Jorgen Nordhagen among those who helped pace to give Brennan and van Aert their chances to assert themselves.
Kuss could still target stage victory
“We all really believe in each other and everybody’s happy to do the work or do their part. Especially the guys that have been pulling all day for all these stage wins. Hats off to them because it’s been super hard.”
Visma aren't done yet as Kuss looked ahead. With Armirail and van Aert to play in the time trial, he himself thinks that the time is right to attack in the stage 19 and 20 mountain tests.
We've seen Kuss get involved in similar moves in this year's Tour de France, coming close to victory back on stage 20 of the Tour while also winning stage 19 of the Giro d'Italia in May. He has won stages in all three Grand Tours, with a win this week to make it a fifth in his career.
“Tomorrow in the TT we have Bruno, we have Wout. And then in the mountain stages I’ll see what I can do. For now it’s just nice to be a part of already so many stage wins.”
Gavin QuinnCycling Journalist
Gavin Quinn is a cycling journalist and ultra-distance cyclist with a BA in Journalism from Dublin City University. Formerly the Press & Communications Officer for Cycling Ireland, Gavin has worked inside the national team at the World Championships and has reported for the Irish Mirror, Mirror UK, and The42.
His expertise is backed by elite-level access, having interviewed stars like Sam Bennett and Ben Healy, as well as immense personal endurance. In 2025, he completed a 12,000km solo cycle from Ireland to Vietnam, following a 4,600km tour across Europe. From the cobbles of Paris-Roubaix to the gradients of the Tourmalet, Gavin’s writing focuses on the "romance and brutality" of the sport. Having visited 50+ countries, he brings a global, cultural perspective to his coverage of the pro peloton for CyclingUpToDate.
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