Christophe Laporte is set to extend his stay with Team Visma | Lease a Bike for a further three years, according to reporting in France, in a move that would keep the 33-year-old with the Dutch squad beyond the end of his current deal in 2026.
The agreement, if completed as reported, would represent an important piece of continuity for both rider and team. Laporte remains one of the most versatile and trusted figures in the Classics, capable of delivering his own result while also playing a decisive supporting role in the biggest one-day races. After a 2025 season badly disrupted by illness, his return to a high level this spring has restored that value in full view.
Laporte’s future reportedly settled before contract expiry
Laporte joined the team in 2022 and has become one of its key riders across both the cobbled Classics and major stage races. His current contract had been due to run out at the end of the 2026 season, but the latest report states that an agreement has now been reached for a further three seasons.
That would be a significant commitment from Team Visma | Lease a Bike to one of the most dependable riders in its structure. Laporte is not simply a finisher who benefits from team strength around him. He is often central to how the team races, whether that means covering moves, forcing tactical pressure on rivals, or still being present deep into a final when others have already been dropped.
Strong spring form has underlined his importance
The timing of the reported extension comes after a spring in which Laporte has again shown his worth. He won the opening stage of the Vuelta a AndalucÃa in mid-February and also led the general classification there, taking the race lead after that first day and sitting prominently in the standings before later abandoning the race overall.
His recent Cobbled Classics campaign has also been notably solid. Results provided from his 2026 season show 16th at Milano-Sanremo, 3rd at E3 Saxo Classic, 3rd at In Flanders Fields, 7th at Dwars door Vlaanderen, 9th at the Tour of Flanders and 5th at Paris-Roubaix.
That sequence matters because it shows more than one standout ride. It points to consistency across the whole northern block, and to a rider who is once again able to influence the biggest races of the spring week after week.
Paris-Roubaix showed both his level and his role
Last weekend’s Paris-Roubaix was the clearest recent example of Laporte’s value to the team. He played a major supporting role in Wout van Aert’s victory, yet still finished 5th himself on the velodrome.
That combination is not easy to find. Teams want leaders, but they also need riders strong enough to shape a race in service of a team plan without disappearing from the result altogether. Laporte has long offered exactly that balance, and Roubaix underlined it again.
It also came at the end of a spring where he has looked close to his best level again after an extremely difficult 2025 campaign.
A return after a virus-hit 2025
Laporte was sidelined for eight months in 2025 because of a virus, a lengthy absence that interrupted his momentum and left questions over how quickly he would return to the level that made him such a major force in the Classics.
This spring has provided an encouraging answer. While he has not added another cobbled win so far, his run of results suggests he is rebuilding the sharpness and resilience that defined his strongest seasons. For a rider in his early thirties, and for a team that relies on depth as much as headline names, that is an important development.
Other teams had reportedly shown interest
The French report also states that several teams had been pushing to sign Laporte for next season, with Ineos Grenadiers named among those interested. Groupama-FDJ United was also said to have come close to an agreement during discussions.
That level of interest is unsurprising. Riders with Laporte’s combination of experience, power, tactical intelligence and proven Classics pedigree are rare. He can win major races in his own right, as shown by victories such as Gent-Wevelgem and Dwars door Vlaanderen in 2023, but he can also strengthen a squad’s overall race-winning potential simply by being part of it.
For Team Visma | Lease a Bike, keeping hold of him looks like a logical move. For Laporte, it appears to bring both stability and reward after a difficult spell. And after the way he has ridden this spring, it is easy to see why both sides would want the partnership to continue.
