"What does he have more than me? There's Mathieu van der Poel..." - Fabio Jakobsen explains biggest difference between himself and Jasper Philipsen

After a somewhat disappointing 2023, Fabio Jakobsen hopes a change of scenery with his move to Team DSM-Firmenich PostNL can get him back into Grand Tour stage-winning form.

"I've always wanted a team where I can sprint for victories in the Tour, perhaps in the Giro," the six-time Grand Tour stage winner opened up to TopCycling from the Team DSM-Firmenich PostNL press day. "I spoke to some, but this was the best option in terms of performance, equipment, having a train for the sprint and a dedicated group of sprinters.”

One of the biggest obstacles to Jakobsen adding to his palmares at the 2024 Tour de France however, will be Alpecin-Deceuninck's Jasper Philipsen. The Belgian was the dominant sprint force at the 2023 edition of the race, taking four stage wins and finishing the year with more victories than any other rider in the peloton.

“He was the best sprinter of the year, but this is a new year. I beat him in 2023, I'll try to beat him more this year," Jakobsen says. But what is the biggest difference between the two sprint stars? "What does he have more than me? There's Mathieu van der Poel... [laughs] That's a little extra. I've been racing against Jasper for a long time, now he's the one who has to stay on top and the rest of us have to try to overtake him.”