'I hope to support him onto the top step' - Simon Yates set to ride for Jonas Vingegaard at Tour de France

After winning the Giro d’Italia with a ride for the ages on stage 20, Simon Yates (Visma | Lease a Bike) has confirmed that his next target will be to support teammate Jonas Vingegaard in his quest for a third Tour de France title this July.

“I hope to be there in the best shape,” Yates said when speaking to reporters after crossing the line on stage 21 in Rome, confirming his plans to be a super-domestique for Vingegaard at the Tour. “I hope to support him, hopefully onto the top step.” 

Despite becoming a Grand Tour champion for the second time, Yates made it clear that his loyalty in July will be to his new team and to Vingegaard. Yates acknowledged the key role that he could play in the Tour on Vingegaard's behalf. 

“I mean at the minute, yeah, that’s the plan,” Yates said. “Absolutely, yeah, I think there’s no debate about that. I think Jonas is clearly one of the favourites there.”

Vingegaard is a two-time Tour champion and would tie level with Tadej Pogačar if he could add a third title to his palmares. Yates will likely prove to be crucial in determining whether Vingegaard will be able to dethrone Pogačar this July. His brother Adam, racing for UAE Team Emirates-XRG, played an important role in Pogačar’s victory last summer, and now Simon will be aiming to replicate this performance.

Yates and Vingegaard are yet to race as teammates due to the concussion that the Dane suffered from a crash at Paris-Nice in March. This ruled him out of the Volta a Catalunya, where they would have raced together for the first time.

After spending 11 seasons with Jayco AlUla and achieving so much success together, Yates acknowledged that it was a major decision to leave the Australian team. 

“A huge change. Not just for me but also my close family, because yeah, it’s quite different,” said Yates. Asked why he joined Visma, he said: “Because I was searching for more.”

The transfer has been a resounding success so far for Yates, who credited his team's role in his Giro success. “It’s paid off, by the looks of things.”

The Tour de France begins on July 5, and Yates is unlikely to race again before July. Like Yates, Wout van Aert is also set to ride the Tour after his exertions at the Giro.

Vingegaard will race the Critérium du Dauphiné next week alongside Sepp Kuss, Matteo Jorgenson and Victor Campenaerts, who are all pencilled in for participation at the Tour.

Tiesj Benoot, another likely member of the Tour team, is set to lead the line at the Tour de Suisse. The squad will convene for a training camp in Tignes ahead of the Tour.