Confidence is high, legs are in good shape, and motivation is spot on: Visma | Lease a Bike is ready for the Australian battle

The sprint stages in the Tour Down Under are over, signaling the readiness of classification riders for the challenging final weekend featuring Willunga Hill and Mount Lofty. Visma | Lease a Bike is pinning its hopes on Milan Vader, while Bart Lemmen and Koen Bouwman also hold relatively good positions in the general classification.

The Dutch team navigated through the flat stages successfully, as team manager Addy Engels notes in the formation's press release after stage four. "Once again, reaching the finish line unscathed. In stage five, it's truly about the marbles," mentions one of the Oceania representatives from Visma | Lease a Bike on the communication channels.

An arrival on Willunga Hill awaits us. You could call it the queen stage of this race because the double climb of Willunga Hill will be the toughest test of this race,' Engels stated. "The general classification will take shape here. It's up to us to be up to speed and defend our position vigorously. To approach that test under the best possible conditions, we had to get through this stage without any problems, and we managed to do just that. All our riders finished in the same time as the day's winner. We are now ready to enhance our ambitions," he indicated after the sprint stage won by Sam Welsford.

Engels: "Arrival on Willunga Hill should definitely suit Vader"

"We aim high with Milan Vader," he explains the ambitions. "The finish on Willunga Hill should certainly suit him. Therefore, we will do everything we can to position him best in the final. Then, we'll see what the result will be, keeping an eye on the general classification as well. Confidence is high, legs are in good shape, and motivation is strong. I can confidently say that we are ready for the final part of this Tour Down Under," concludes the eager coach.

Leader Vader, who has been focused on this race for a long time, is currently 17th in the standings, eleven seconds off leader Isaac del Toro of UAE-Team Emirates. Bouwman (49th) and Lemmen (51st) are in the same time.