Sepp Kuss has full confidence in Jonas Vingegaard: "All signs point to him being on the right track"

Sepp Kuss and Jonas Vingegaard are a pairing that have brought Team Visma | Lease a Bike a considerable amount of success over the years. Currently, both riders are preparing for the 2025 Tour de France at the Criterium du Dauphiné.

"I'm doing well. I feel good, and I'm ready to enjoy the race," former Vuelta a Espana winner Kuss says happily in a pre-stage 3 interview at the Dauphine with Cycling Pro Net. "Today will be a hard stage, especially with the difficult first part. I'm definitely looking forward to the weekend to see where we stand."

Already at the Dauphine, Kuss, Vingegaard and the entire Visma team have shown some positive signs. As such, morale is high with the main goal of reclaiming the Maillot Jaune at the Tour de France drawing ever closer. "We have trained a lot with the team, and everyone is in good shape. We had some really good training rides and a good atmosphere, so no complaints there," Kuss explains. "I'm just trying to enjoy this race and get the feeling of competing back. I know how tough the Dauphiné is, just to get through it. I'll do my best in the weekend stages and then see where I am, but the tough stages in the Tour are still a few weeks away."

On stage 1, Vingegaard even showed himself in a bunch sprint, taking 2nd place on the day behind his long time rival Tadej Pogacar. "He always has a decent kick, but he doesn't always get to show it,” Kuss laughs. “I think that first stage was really intense, especially on that last climb. If you have the legs, you can accelerate over the top. We've seen that the strongest riders in this race can do that. It just confirms how well Vingegaard is doing."

"He always looks pretty relaxed," concludes the American. "He's focused and won the Dauphiné before, so he knows what it means to win heading into the Tour. I'm sure he's trying to enjoy it too. He's in good shape, and when there's a tough moment like Sunday, it's never wrong to try it. It gives him confidence after not racing for a while. All signs point to him being on the right track."