"It's a luxury position to have Sepp Kuss, Simon Yates and Matteo Jorgenson there" - Grischa Niermann sees Visma & Vingegaard's Tour de France strength in depth

Team Visma | Lease a Bike are very clear in their goals for the 2025 Tour de France - reclaim the Maillot Jaune. Jonas Vingegaard undoubtedly starts as the team leader and main Yellow Jersey challenger, but the truth is, the team have multiple GC contenders in their ranks at this Grand Tour.

Vingegaard has had a big preparation for the Tour this year, even already going into battle with rivals Tadej Pogacar and Remco Evenepoel at the Criterium du Dauphine. According to Visma DS Grischa Niermann, everything is going very much to plan, despite the fact that Vingegaard was ultimately beaten by his long-time rival Pogacar at the Dauphine last month.

"He was doing everything we wanted him to do and he is now in the shape we wanted him to be," Niermann explains to Cycling News. "We knew that last year he was a lot less explosive due to his crash, and of course, he surprised me in the end that Jonas was second in the bunch sprint. We also know that he has become a bit more explosive, but he will still not be as explosive as Pogacar. It was one of the goals, but that was clear after last year. Due to the crash and a little bit less muscle mass he was just less explosive."

One of the big questions heading into the Tour this year, is who has the strongest team, Vingegaard's Visma or Pogacar's UAE? Somewhat unsurprisingly, Niermann is backing the strength in depth of his squad. "It’s a pleasure. We have a very strong team for the Tour," he concludes. "Going into the Tour, Jonas is our leader. But of course, it's a nice, luxury position to also have Sepp Kuss, to also have Simon Yates, to also have Matteo Jorgenson there, so that's nice."