Visma | Lease a Bike confident Jonas Vingegaard can beat Tadej Pogacar: “In 2025 it will be different again”

Visma | Lease a Bike remains confident that Jonas Vingegaard, the Tour de France winner in 2022 and 2023, will be able to compete head-to-head with Tadej Pogacar for the 2025 Tour de France title. Vingegaard’s performance this year was significantly impacted by his serious crash in the spring, which left him facing a long recovery before the Tour began.

Frans Maassen, team manager at Visma, discussed Vingegaard’s challenges and outlook with Wielerflits, sharing insight into the Danish rider’s resilience. “Jonas went into the off-season with a good feeling,” Maassen said.

“This year it didn’t feel like losing the Tour. The Tour even felt like a victory to us. It was uncertain until the last moment whether he would even be able to start in the Tour. We were really nervous before those first stages whether he would even be able to hold his own and ride in the peloton. That was a bit of a thing. Fortunately, it all went well.”

Despite the challenges, Maassen is optimistic about Vingegaard’s chances. “Pogacar is simply the best. It is up to the rest of the peloton to look to reduce the gap,” he explained, adding that it will take combined efforts from multiple teams to challenge the Slovenian’s dominance. “Hopefully the gap will be a bit smaller again next year.”

While the 2025 Tour de France route was just announced, Maassen clarified that final decisions about Vingegaard’s 2025 racing schedule have yet to be made. “The Tour remains the most important. The best riders always go there. But the Giro d'Italia and Vuelta will also always be well-attended,” he noted, suggesting that while the Tour is likely to remain the primary goal, other Grand Tours could be in consideration.