The Critérium du Dauphiné was a wildly successful affair for Jumbo-Visma who saw themselves taking three stage wins, first and second in the overall classification aswell as most of the race in the yellow&green jerseys and multiple second places. Wout van Aert largely contributed to that, and he's talked about the conclusions from the week.
“It means we are on the right way. It’s super motivating, and it gives a lot of confidence to finish off a week in the Dauphiné like this. This is one of the hardest stage races of the year," he told after the finale at Plateau de Solaison where his teammates Primoz Roglic and Jonas Vingegaard stormed to their respective wins.
Van Aert won the stages to Beauchastel and Chaintré and finished second on the individual time-trial and the hilltop finish in Sancy. Besides, he has won another bunch sprint on stage two, but for minor places. The Belgian was all over the headlines for six days, and in the final two he worked for the team's GC aspirations. Managing to not burn himself as he reported in Tirreno-Adriatico last year, he took the ascents easier whilst having his work be done in the flat roads.
On the climbs Steven Kruijswijk proved to be more than enough support for the team, who dominated the final stages of the race aswell. “It’s hard to say if Primož is improving because he doesn’t have much to improve. He’s won three times the Vuelta, but he was unlucky a few times in the Tour,” van Aert said.
The Slovenian won't be the sole team leader in France this year though as Jonas Vingegaard has put on an equally impressive performance over the week, devoting himself to his teammates but nevertheless having the legs to distance all rivals in the final climb of the race and taking the stage win - besides second in the GC.
“The strength of the team is even a bigger advantage than in the last years, and I believe this will be key in the Tour this year," van Aert points out, and Jumbo-Visma are currently heading into the Tour with the preparation seemingly ideal.
Rúben SilvaEditor-in-Chief
A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
Beyond editorial work, he has been closely involved in the expansion and coordination of CyclingUpToDate’s wider network, helping establish and support sister platforms across multiple languages. This includes ongoing collaboration with CiclismoAlDia (Spanish), CiclismoAtual (Portuguese), WielrennenUpToDate (Dutch), and RadsportAktuell (German), contributing to a shared editorial vision and consistent international coverage.
He also helps oversee editorial governance across the network, setting standards for accuracy and consistency and coordinating updates or corrections when needed.
Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
Within 18 months of launch, he helped grow CyclingUpToDate’s English-language platform into one of the most-read cycling news websites, built entirely from the ground up. As both a professional journalist and lifelong cycling enthusiast, his focus remains on delivering accurate, timely, and well-contextualized coverage.
claps 0visitors 0
Just in
Popular news
Latest comments
- This is a phenomenal course design. I do wish that they'd stretch these tours for the women to at least 2 weeks.RidesHills03-11-2026
- This is an amazing route, honestly. Let's hope that it attracts riders to make it a compelling and competitive race. Side bar amusement: going to Slovenia and passing pretty close to Pogačar's house. I wonder if they were tempting him to get all 3 jerseys at once after winning the Tour and Vuelta. After all, only a very few have ever had all three at the same time (Froome being the last).RidesHills03-11-2026
- He was a child two years ago
Rafionain-Glas03-11-2026 - A great route aswell. Col d'Arpy is a toughieRafionain-Glas03-11-2026
- Let Torito have a shot at itRafionain-Glas03-11-2026
- A great route, much more exciting than the Tour de France. Monte Livata is an interesting one, because they experimented with it at the 2026 Baby Giro, and it was fantastic. 4 km at 10%, then 10 km at 6.5% made for a great spectacle. The stage 16 is horrible. Montaner is also used in the U23s, in Giro del BelvedereRafionain-Glas03-11-2026
- I remember when Mark went through that. He was really experiencing lows and thought about quiting many times. It took him a long time to recover. I, like many others were overjoyed when he came back. I hope Lafay has been tested. I wish him the best.Paggss03-11-2026
- That sucks for him. I've always wondered what guys like him do after retiring from cycling - go back to uni? He's still a very young manCrashjames03-11-2026
- Good Point, I wonder if he's been testedmhfrvz03-11-2026
- A busy boy!Lozza03-11-2026
Loading
🇫🇷 #Dauphiné 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐬𝐭. Chapeau @WoutvanAert 💚🍾
Write a comment