“The goal is to be successful as a team and to win as many stages as possible,” says Van Aert. After missing the Tour de France, the Belgian showed good form at the recent Tour of Denmark. “I’m a rider who can compete on different types of courses, so this Vuelta certainly offers some opportunities for me to win a stage. For the team, a strong result in the overall standings is less important.”  

The 81st Vuelta a España starts Saturday with a short individual time trial on the streets of Monaco. Van Aert has specifically prepared for the discipline in recent months. “In recent seasons, I haven’t focused extremely heavily on time trialing, whereas I did earlier in my career. In the run-up to this Vuelta, I trained more specifically on the time trial bike, with the opening time trial in mind.”  

“The time trial immediately offers an opportunity to compete for the win and could give me a strong position in the overall standings,” says Van Aert, who won three stages in 2024 and wore the red leader’s jersey for two days. “Taking the red jersey again in the first days is certainly a goal for me. We head into the mountains fairly quickly, so I want to take the opportunities that come my way.”  

Alongside Van Aert, Team Visma | Lease a Bike has another option for fast finishes in Matthew Brennan. The 21-year-old Brit will make his grand tour debut. “With Matthew, we also have a weapon for the pure sprints,” says Van Aert. “He has shown several times how fast he is in a mass sprint. I’m convinced we’ll both get our opportunities. The way the race unfolds will determine which card we play.”  

Van Aert and Brennan will be supported by a lineup that combines experience and young talent. Among them are Steven Kruijswijk, who will ride the final grand tour of his illustrious career, and former winner Sepp Kuss. The 21-year-old Jørgen Nordhagen is also preparing for his grand tour debut. Ben Tulett, Bruno Armirail, and Christophe Laporte complete the lineup.