A top Visma-Lease a Bike sports director has stressed that Jonas Vingegaard, the double Tour de France winner, needs to elevate his performance to stay competitive against Tadej Pogaฤar. The Slovenian rider from UAE Team Emirates clinched his third Tour title in five editions this July, breaking Vingegaard’s consecutive wins in 2022 and 2023.
Speaking to Danish newspaper BT, Visma sports director Frans Maassen remarked that Pogaฤar is currently operating at a level that Vingegaard must strive to reach. Maassen also dismissed rumours of Vingegaard making his Giro d’Italia debut in 2025, noting, “Right now, I donโt see that idea as realistic.”
Vingegaard faced significant challenges this year, including a severe injury in April that kept him off form for many weeks before the Tour de France. Despite these setbacks, Maassen praised Vingegaard for gaining considerable mental strength over time. “Now his engine is under control again after the crash, and Jonas himself is a guy who is hard to beat,” Maassen said. “I think he has become a different rider after this year. Now he has โsurvivedโ everything, and next year he will compete with the worldโs best riders again.”
Vingegaard’s 2024 season concluded with his overall victory in the Tour de Pologne in August. However, Maassen acknowledged that beating Pogaฤar in the 2025 Tour de France would be a formidable task for the Dane. “He has to find a way to get better,” Maassen commented. “Jonas is something special. We will have to see how his preparation goes and how strong he is. I hope he can beat Pogaฤar, but itโs hard to say.”
Unsurprisingly, Maassen suggested it would be nearly impossible for Vingegaard to skip the Tour de France in 2025. Nonetheless, if Vingegaard continues to avoid the Giro next season, it would make the need to challenge Pogaฤar on more equal terms even more urgent. “Jonas does not like the idea of having to return to the Tour and finish second,” Maassen told BT. “He wants to be the best and has to work very hard to get better, and it will be a challenge because if he stays at the same level, he probably wonโt be able to beat Tadej Pogaฤar anymore.”
Main photo credit: Getty
