"Visma performs better with crosswinds and tight roads, UAE tends to fall apart" - Danish icon doubts Tour de France will be decided in the mountains

All across the cycling world, the excitement levels are building, with the Grand Depart of the 2025 Tour de France now just a matter of days away. Before the riders get underway in Lille however, there are plenty of experts giving predictions, including Danish cycling icon Brian Holm.

As always, the biggest question heading into the Tour, is who will end up winning the Maillot Jaune. For Holm, it is his compatriot and two-time Tour de France winner Jonas Vingegaard who leads the list of pre-race contenders, ahead of reigning champion Tadej Pogacar. “I think it’ll be Vingegaard,” Holm begins in quotes collected by Ekstra Bladet, even giving an immediate reason behind his theory. “During the first nine days in northern France, I reckon he’ll have the stronger team for the narrow roads.”

“It could be absolute madness in those early stages if there’s crosswind and slick roads – then it’ll all come down to the teams," continues the 62-year-old. "I often find that Visma performs better under those conditions, with crosswinds and tight roads. UAE, on the other hand, tends to fall apart because they bring too many climbers.”

More often than not, it is in the high mountains that the winner of the Maillot Jaune in decided. It's not completely unheard of to see the superior climber in the peloton defeated by time losses on the flat though. “That’s the thing about cycling – you never really know," Holm notes. "What we do know is that we should never underestimate those flat or rolling stages, because they can be hell on earth."

"We see it year after year. Even the queen stage can end up being a flop,” continues the Dane. “When you look at the two time trials, the first week on narrow roads, and then that final week with the climb up La Plagne – to me, it looks like a win for Vingegaard.”