'Jonas can't go faster than hard either' - Visma weigh up loss of Zingle ahead of Vuelta TTT

Team time trials have become a rare commodity in modern Grand Tour racing, with the last one incidentally coming at the 2023 Vuelta around the streets of Barcelona, and that was a mess. We can all remember Remco Evenepoel's outburst of emotion to the camera at the end of that stage.

The last team time trial many of the riders competing on stage 5 will have done was stage 3 at the 2025 Paris-Nice in March, when the peloton took on an effort around the racing track Magny-Cours. It was won by Visma | Lease a Bike, with Jonas Vingegaard and Matteo Jorgenson, followed closely by Jayco AlUla and Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe.

Speaking to In de Leiderstrui, Heijboer was happy to see the reintroduction of team time trials, stating: "Fortunately, this is a normal one again. At this stage of the season it is very difficult to pay specific attention to it, but luckily we have an experienced team and some guys who rode in Paris-Nice. The day before the first stage in the Vuelta we trained together and we also have a very fixed pattern of agreements and working methods, which is known to every rider. So it was a matter of repeating, although we are riding in a new composition."

Heijboer also recognised that Visma | Lease a Bike have not been able to dedicate their full resources to preparing for the effort. The head of performance clarified: "The time and energy we have been able to put into it has been limited. We have not set up a separate camp in the Netherlands, but we trust our working method. Although we had to go back to the drawing board, because Axel Zingle is no longer there. The riders focused on stages 1 to 4 in the first few days and I was working on that time trial in the background. That will only be the case for the group from Wednesday."

As Heijboer mentioned, Visma | Lease a Bike will be without Axel Zingle, who had to abandon the race after dislocating his shoulder on stage 2. He somehow finished the stage, but under medical advice was a DNS before stage 3 the next day.

"That is a very big loss, also because Axel is a very strong rider, who was also very important in Paris-Nice. Just calculate how many percent you miss if you suddenly have to start with seven instead of eight. However, it is what it is and we are still confident that we have a good team. We're going for it," Heijboer stated.

In de Leiderstrui asked Heijboer whether Jonas Vingegaard could make up for the loss of the Frenchman. He answered: "In the end, Jonas can't go faster than hard either, but it's true that especially in the second part of the time trial, the strong guys often pull the cart. Then there will also be more line in it when they are in the lead. On a flat course, I therefore expect a lot from Victor and Matteo, who have a lot of absolute power. And Jonas will certainly stand his ground."