"It quickly became clear that we would be fighting for second place" - Sepp Kuss makes a strong bid for Vuelta podium

Cycling
Wednesday, 26 August 2026 at 06:00
Sepp Kuss crosses the line on stage 4 of the 2026 Vuelta a Espana
Without a dedicated leader for general classification but not lacking in ambition and grit; that's one way to characterize Visma | Lease a Bike's start to the 2026 Vuelta a Espana. In the race's first mountain test, Sepp Kuss rose to the top and on home roads in Andorra crossed finish line in fifth position.

"It quickly became clear that we would be fighting for second place"

The Dutch team entered today's stage with a massive offensive which saw four of its riders feature in the day's early breakaway. All with the ambition to place Sepp Kuss in red jersey at the end of the day. However Decathlon CMA CGM had other plans and kept any attempts on a short leash, setting up the decisive attack of Tadej Pogacar with 50 kilometers to go.
"It quickly became clear that we would be fighting for second place, so the racing changed," Kuss recalls today's stage on team website. "I started today's stage without too many expectations. I mainly wanted to see how things would go."
"My initial plan was to make it into the breakaway, but shortly afterward I decided to go for a good result instead. In the end, I can be satisfied with this result and I’m happy with my form. It was also nice to race on roads that I know very well."

Good initial investment

Kuss then continued on with the main GC group which arrived 2:39 behind the Slovenian. Kuss now resides in fourth position overall, only 12 seconds off Enric Mas' podium.
"This performance gives me confidence for the rest of this Vuelta," Kuss concluded.
Visma's main goal for the Spanish Grand Tour remains to be successful on daily basis with sprinter options Matthew Brennan, Wout Van Aert, or Christophe Laporte. In addition, Jorgen Nordhagen and Ben Tulett should be strong cards to play in breakaways, even though Kuss' GC quest might tie their hands a little bit.
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