Visma might have chosen its eighth man for the Tour de France - And it's not one of its bright climbers

Team Visma | Lease a Bike decided on their Tour de France lineup still in January when the riders' calendars were revealed to the media, but since, Christophe Laporte was forced out of the '8'. Reportedly, the decision is made on his replacement, and it might come as a surprise.

The Dutch team is aiming to win the Grand Boucle, as has happened in previous years this decade. With a Tadej Pogacar and UAE Team Emirates - XRG that show no sign of slowing down, Visma can only be in contention with Jonas Vingegaard if they have their absolute best at the start in Barcelona this July.

Hence, every rider is important. Sepp Kuss and Matteo Jorgenson would be the mountain-specific domestiques; Bruno Armirail and Victor Campenaerts would be key men on the mountains and hilly terrain; Edoardo Affini would be the main motor for the flat stages whilst Wout Van Aert would be a wildcards for different stages, as well as having some of his own opportunities.

Christophe Laporte would then serve the purpose of working on the flat days for Jonas Vingegaard, and potentially leading out Van Aert as well. But in May, the Frenchman suffered a torn quad muscle in a training crash, forcing the team to change its lineup - but not is plans.

The Tour Auvergne - Rhône-Alpes proved to be a very important week to test the main contenders to replace Laporte. CyclingUpToDate looked into the candidates, in which three names stood out: Ben Tulett, Jorgen Nordhagen and Per Strand Hagenes.

Hagenes and Nordhagen both left the race before the start of stage 7 with illness. Tulett had a mechanical during the TTT which ended his GC run, but was a key support rider for Matteo Jorgenson all throughout.

Having supported Vingegaard at the Vuelta a España last year, Tulett was highly regarded as the likely choice. His climbing performances this year also proved to be worthy of a Tour selection.

On the other hand, Nordhagen's breakthrough also promised. The Norwegian was fourth at the recent Tour de Romandie and was at the doors of the Top10 when he withdrew from Auvergne.

But Visma did not look at the results on paper, but instead the best candidate to fill Laporte's role. According to Het Laatste Nieuws, the decision has been made to replace the Frenchman with Per Strand Hagenes, who has finally shown his true potential this spring.

The selection may come as a surprise, as the 21-year old has not ridden a Grand Tour before, and experience is key in order to fight for a Tour de France win. But the Norwegian is a similar rider to Laporte and should have the same role.

Hagenes was second to Mathieu van der Poel at the E3 Saxo Classic, in a spring where he had several breakout performances. He also won the Antwerp Port Epic recently, his first win since joining the elite team in 2024 - although he has won several pro races the year before, whilst still part of the development team.