Why Visma | LAB is not opting for an ultra-strong climbing team in Strade Bianche (but still hopes for a podium finish)

Before delving deeper into Strade Bianche, let’s talk about Jonas Vingegaard first. The Dane recently mentioned that he had Strade Bianche on his schedule earlier this winter, but the race was eventually canceled. "That decision was made back in December when we reviewed the programs with the riders. It definitely wasn’t a last-minute decision. He was initially included, but after discussing it with Jonas, it was immediately dropped," Van Dongen said.

Visma | Lease a Bike saw Strade Bianche as a great opportunity for the Dane, but he wanted to spend some time with his family between O Gran Camiño and the Tirreno-Adriatico, which starts Monday. "Do we have plans for him in one-day races? That would be long-term planning. The main reason to initially ride here was because there’s a gravel stage in this year’s Tour de France, which was the underlying thought. But you increasingly see that riders who participate in the Tirreno don’t often opt for the double with Strade Bianche anymore. There’s only one day in between, while the Tirreno used to run from Wednesday to Tuesday."

Apart from Vingegaard, the team still has some strong climbers in its roster, but not all are being played out. "We have a nice team, but we don’t have the absolute top favorite. That’s Tadej Pogacar, and Tom Pidcock made an impression last year," Van Dongen admits. "With Kuss, Valter, and Tulett, we’re going to try to ride a very good race. Valter performed well in the UAE Tour, despite taking a hard fall in the first sprint stage. He rode a decent time trial nonetheless and finished fifth in the general classification. He’s started the season well and is in good form. We expect, also after the last two editions (where Valter finished fourth and fifth), that he can play a leading role coming Saturday."

"We expect the same from Sepp Kuss, who showed in Jaén that he is well-suited to a gravel race. Ben Tulett, with his background as a cyclo-cross rider, should also be strong. He can definitely finish in the top five," the team director continues. However, there's still a slight question mark behind Tulett's name. "We have to wait and see how the guys are doing after Gran Camiño, but we expect everyone to be in top shape by Saturday. Racing for a week in rain and cold, you run a high risk of catching a cold. I know Wilco Kelderman is a bit sniffly at the moment, although that doesn't necessarily have to be a problem. It's an increased risk. Vingegaard? Fortunately, he's not having any problems."

The big question after all this is: why not Vingegaard? Why not Wout van Aert? Cian Uijtdebroeks? Matteo Jorgenson? According to Van Dongen, races like Strade Bianche are not a priority at the moment. "Of course, we want to perform as well and as strongly as possible in the one-day climbing races. But it's a matter of making choices in the annual planning. Wout van Aert could also do well here, but he's not here. Making choices and pursuing our main goals, which are Flanders, Roubaix, and the Tour. It's all possible. If we made Strade Bianche an absolute main goal, then we could set up a team with favorites. That's not the case now, but maybe in the future. Every year we set new objectives."

That Visma | Lease a Bike is strong overall could be an advantage on Saturday. "We did the reconnaissance on Thursday, and it's simply a lot longer," Van Dongen refers to the race being 215 instead of 185 kilometers. "The final will therefore be even longer than in previous years, because that extra loop of thirty kilometers is not very spectacular in terms of climbing and gravel. I expect that things will kick off again at Monte Sante Marie, that there will be full-on racing and favorites will emerge. Our goal? A podium would be very nice and very good, but I'm not going to put a number on it. We could have three men in the top ten, but no podium finish, and still have ridden a very good race. A lot can happen in this race, but we do have a team that should be able to compete."