“There is more pressure on some of the other teams” - Visma DS happy to see Jonas Vingegaard avoid early Maglia Rosa at the Giro d'Italia

Jonas Vingegaard is already exactly where Team Visma | Lease a Bike want him at the Giro d'Italia. Close enough to threaten, sharp enough to worry his rivals, but still without the daily burden that comes with wearing the Maglia Rosa.

After four stages, Vingegaard sits 11th overall, ten seconds behind new race leader Giulio Ciccone. That gap is small enough to leave the Dane in a powerful position before the first major climbing test, but large enough to keep pink on somebody else’s shoulders for now.

For Visma sports director Jesper Morkov, that is no bad thing. Speaking to Eurosport Denmark before stage 5, Morkov made clear that the team are comfortable seeing others carry the visible responsibility of race leadership at this early point in the Giro.

“The pink jersey has been fine not to take yet,” said Morkov. “It is fine that someone else has it and it is fine that there is a little more pressure on some of the other teams. Then we look forward to the days when we have to step up.”

There is an obvious tactical benefit in keeping the Maglia Rosa elsewhere. The team of the race leader is expected to help control breakaways, manage the tempo and defend the jersey every day, even on stages that might otherwise be passed over to other formations.

But the burden is not only on the road. Wearing pink brings extra podium duties, more media, longer post-stage routines and a more demanding pre-stage schedule. In a three-week Grand Tour, that can mean later nights, earlier mornings, reduced recovery time and less calm around the team bus and hotel.

Tadej Pogacar made carrying the Maglia Rosa for almost an entire Giro look almost routine in 2024, when he held pink for 19 stages, but that was the exception rather than the model most teams would choose. For Visma, there is little reason to add that load before the race has reached its first true general classification checkpoint.

Vingegaard has already shown signs of strength. His attack on stage 2 briefly split the race open and underlined that he is not simply waiting for the high mountains. Yet Visma have also been careful to frame much of their early approach around safety, positioning and control rather than an immediate grab for the jersey.

Morkov suggested that stage 7, with the summit finish on Blockhaus, remains the first major marker in Visma’s plan. “There is talk of a bit of rain later, and it can also blow a little,” he said of the coming days. “We also have to go up some good mountains, so it will be exciting. We more or less have to get through the next couple of days well. Stage seven is the first real cross, but let us now see what the bike race becomes today. We have to follow the bike race.”

That caution reflects the shape of the opening week. The Giro has already been heavily marked by crashes, abandonments and reshuffled ambitions, while Vingegaard has lost Wilco Kelderman from his climbing support group after the Dutchman failed to recover from injuries sustained in the stage 2 crash.

Even so, Visma’s wider position remains strong. Vingegaard has avoided time loss, stayed out of serious trouble and kept himself within one small acceleration or bonus sprint of the top of the standings. The pressure, for now, sits elsewhere.

Ciccone has the Maglia Rosa. Jan Christen, Florian Stork, Egan Bernal and Thymen Arensman are all ahead of Vingegaard overall. Visma, though, appear content to let others enjoy the ceremony and shoulder the obligations while their leader waits for the terrain that really matters.

The message from Morkov was clear enough. Vingegaard does not need pink yet. Visma only need him ready when the Giro finally demands a full answer.