“Remco wanted to make it hard” – Gregoire snaps Visma’s Tour of Britain winning streak

Team Visma | Lease a Bike’s perfect streak at the 2025 Tour of Britain finally came to an end on Stage 4. After Olav Kooij’s back-to-back wins on the opening two days and Matthew Brennan’s victory on Stage 3, the Dutch squad could not add another to their tally. Instead, the spotlight belonged to Romain Grégoire of Groupama – FDJ, who not only won the stage but also pulled on the leader’s jersey. Kooij, who had carried the overall lead since Stage 1, ceded it to the 22-year-old Frenchman.

Visma sports director Marc Reef explained the team’s approach. “Due to the profile of today’s stage, we decided to take a slightly more defensive approach and let other teams control the race. Over the past few days, we’ve used a lot of energy securing stage wins with Olav and Matthew. Today, Matthew had another chance to see how far he could go. Thomas Gloag also rode a strong race. He did an excellent job several times by neutralising attacks from others. In the end, Matthew was just a bit too far back to fight for the win, but he still finished strongly. Tomorrow brings another tough stage with a summit finish. Thomas will have another opportunity to show what he can do there as well.”

Grégoire, meanwhile, credited his team for the flawless execution. “We approached the race in the right way, and the guys did a great job all day to position me,” he said in a Groupama–FDJ release. “On the finishing circuit, it wasn’t easy because some guys wanted to open the race from far and make it hard, like Remco. We managed it pretty well by staying patient and making the effort when necessary. All the guys did their part, but a special mention goes to Olivier Le Gac, who rode a fantastic race. He was there all the time and was really perfect in terms of positioning.”

The Frenchman described how the finale unfolded in his favor. “I played my cards fully and positioned myself ideally one kilometre from the finish line,” he explained. His sports director Jérôme Gannat highlighted the tactical precision: “He got on the Soudal-Quick Step’s train and was smart not to follow Evenepoel, but rather a rider he knows well: Sam [Watson]. He went hard from the bottom and that put Romain in a good position.”

From there, Grégoire showed remarkable composure. “When Romain is in this kind of finish, when he knows he can win, he doesn’t make mistakes,” Jérôme said. “He took the right wheels and we felt that he was confident and calm. He was patient, because we said in the briefing that he should launch the sprint before the last corner, since the last 200 metres were less difficult, at 4%.”

The plan worked to perfection. “When I felt it was the moment, I went for it, and it held until the line,” Grégoire said. He crossed ahead of Julian Alaphilippe to secure what he described as a dream outcome. “It’s really great. It was a big objective to win here. The whole team did an incredible job and deserved this victory. I’m really happy. We have the leader’s jersey as a bonus, so we couldn’t have hoped for much better!”

For Groupama – FDJ, the victory also held symbolic value. “Originally, La Conti was supposed to ride this race,” Jérôme said. “We finally decided to come with the WorldTour team, but almost all the staff are from La Conti. It’s also important for them to be with riders like Romain and fight for the win in great races like the Tour of Britain.”

Looking ahead, he underlined the challenge to come: “On Saturday, the entire Groupama-FDJ cycling team will try to maintain this strong momentum heading towards The Tumble (5.5 km at 7.3%). This is practically their Alpe d’Huez. It’s a climb that could suit Romain’s abilities. We have a team with experienced riders like Olivier and Quentin to support him, and it will be another challenge for us.”

Grégoire knows defending the jersey will demand everything. “I’m ready to fight,” he declared. “Anyway, when you have a leader’s jersey on your shoulders, you have an obligation to battle for it.”