Paris-Nice was win no. 7, Tirreno no. 18: Hungry Visma | Lease a Bike ready for UAE despite Zeeman’s absence

Visma | Lease a Bike has had a solid start to the season, but when compared to the dominant UAE Team Emirates-XRG, the Dutch squad looks like a smaller player. After Sunday, Tadej Pogačar’s team had already racked up 18 victories, while Visma | Lease a Bike stood at seven. It’s a typical slow start for the Killer Bees, but after Paris-Nice and Tirreno-Adriatico, they made it clear that this is just the beginning.

UAE Team Emirates has already dominated across multiple continents, winning in Australia, Mallorca, the UAE Tour, and of course, Pogačar’s spectacular solo win at Strade Bianche. Meanwhile, Visma | Lease a Bike has relied on Olav Kooij, who took three wins—twice in Oman and once in Tirreno-Adriatico. Jonas Vingegaard secured both stage and overall victory in Algarve, and the team also won the team time trial in Paris-Nice. While their win count is slightly behind last year’s pace, there is no cause for concern.

Both UAE and Visma proved in Paris-Nice and Tirreno-Adriatico that they will be the teams to beat once again in 2025. Juan Ayuso claimed overall victory in Tirreno-Adriatico, while Matteo Jorgenson successfully defended his Paris-Nice title. That brings the tally to 18-7 in favor of UAE, but for Visma | Lease a Bike, these two races marked the true beginning of their season. "From now on, the real racing starts," said a hungry Steven Kruijswijk to IDLProCycling.com.

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Matteo Jorgenson won Paris-Nice for the second time in a row

Visma | Lease a Bike traditionally starts off slow, but now wants to reap rewards

At 37 years old, Steven Kruijswijk is one of the cultural guardians at Visma | Lease a Bike. Now in his 16th season with the team, he isn't fazed by the gap in victories between Visma and UAE Team Emirates. "I think people shouldn’t forget that we traditionally start later compared to other teams. We don’t race much in February because our focus is on these races from March onward, especially with the classics coming up."

"You can only evaluate our spring campaign after the classics and the first stage races—not just by counting our wins in February," added the Dutch climber, who started his season slightly earlier than usual in 2025. "Since I’ll be racing the Giro d’Italia this year, my spring is structured a bit differently. That’s why we decided to skip a training camp and add more races instead. I’ve built up gradually, focusing on the period ahead—especially the Giro."

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Steven Kruijswijk

Visma | Lease a Bike makes "different choices"

Team director Marc Reef echoed Kruijswijk’s sentiments after the final stage of Tirreno-Adriatico. "We always perform well from this point in the season, after everyone returns to racing following the Opening Weekend. From here, it’s natural to expect more from the group and the results we deliver. Compared to other teams, we take a different approach and tend to grow into the season."

"Our main goals are clear: the Classics and the Grand Tours," Reef emphasized. So, it’s no surprise that Visma | Lease a Bike isn’t yet matching Pogačar and company. But that could change soon... "Outside of our biggest goals, we still try to pick up results, but that tends to happen more from the first weekend of March onward. We’re looking ahead with confidence—winning Paris-Nice overall, taking the team time trial, and securing a stage win here shows we’re on the right track."

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Cian Uijtdebroeks gave up on the final day of the Tirreno

Kruijswijk sees little impact from Merijn Zeeman’s departure at Visma | Lease a Bike

There’s no panic at Visma | Lease a Bike, even if their win count is still below ten in mid-March. And there’s no concern now that, instead of having Merijn Zeeman as sports director, the team is led by a five-person management group. Zeeman has moved on to work at football club AZ, but according to Steven Kruijswijk, he left the team in good hands. "It was a shame that he left, but of course, he made sure the team remained as it was, with experienced staff who have been here for a long time. In that sense, things have just continued as they were.

"Obviously, it’s a big loss not to have him around anymore—Merijn was one of the founders of the team as it exists today. But he did everything to make sure he left things in the right way," Kruijswijk added. As one of the team's veteran leaders, he’s also taking on a mentorship role himself.

"I can play a role in that, especially for the newer riders. I’ve been with this team for a long time, so it’s also my job to set an example. Being an extension of the sports directors, guiding the younger guys where needed," he analyzed. It’s a role he has held for several years, but now, perhaps, it carries even more importance than in previous seasons. "For me, though, not much has really changed. I think it only looks different on paper. I hardly notice that Merijn is gone—except on a personal level, of course, but not within the organization."

Bram van der Ploeg (Twitter: @BvdPloegg | email: [email protected])     

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