Jasper Philipsen will spearhead Alpecin-Deceuninck at the Vuelta a España, returning to Grand Tour action just weeks after his Tour de France ended abruptly with a stage 3 crash. The Belgian sprinter has the chance to bounce back immediately, with the opening stage from Turin to Novara offering him the rare prospect of pulling on the red leader’s jersey on day one.
Philipsen arrives in Spain as the fastest pure sprinter in the field, though the competition is fierce. Mads Pedersen, fresh from dominating his home Tour of Denmark, is his biggest rival, while Ethan Vernon and Casper van Uden add further depth to the sprinting line-up.
Photo Credit: GettyPhilipsen himself only resumed racing in Denmark after breaking his collarbone, with modest results there, but a fourth-place finish at the Cyclassics Hamburg on Sunday underlined that his speed is returning at just the right time.
The Belgian acknowledged the uncertainty of his preparation last week. “Denmark will determine my future programme. I’d love to ride the Vuelta; it’s one of the few major goals I still have this fall. I’m really motivated to be there, but with my limited preparation, we also have to see what’s realistic,” he said. His performances since appear to have convinced both rider and team that a Vuelta campaign is viable.
Alpecin-Deceuninck are clear about their objective. “We line up with one clear goal: stage wins, just as we’ve done in most previous Grand Tours we started,” the team stated, and Philipsen remains their focal point. Unlike at the Tour, where Mathieu van der Poel and Kaden Groves piloted him into position, he will rely on Jonas Rickaert and Edward Planckaert to provide the lead-out. Their experience offers reassurance, but the gaps in his train may be exposed against the depth of Lidl-Trek’s support for Pedersen.
The Vuelta’s sprinting opportunities are limited, with only stages 1, 8, 19, and the finale in Madrid marked as flat. Spanish “flat” stages are rarely straightforward, with wind, heat, and undulating run-ins often unsettling pure sprinters. Still, the lure of the opening stage red jersey makes Novara the key target.
Photo Credit: GettyPhilipsen has history at the Vuelta, too – it was here, in 2020, that he claimed his first Grand Tour stage win with UAE Team Emirates before adding two more a year later with Alpecin.
This will be his first appearance at the race since abandoning in 2021. A return to winning ways would not only mark his comeback from injury but also push his career tally of Grand Tour stage victories beyond the 13 he currently holds. Supporting him in Spain will be Luca Vergallito, Tobias Bayer, Gal Glivar, Ramses Debruyne, and Oscar Riesebeek. Alpecin-Deceuninck already count four Grand Tour stage wins in 2025, and Philipsen’s return offers the chance to add to that number – and perhaps even begin the race in red.
