The cycling season is yet to begin, but Visma | Lease a Bike already has its leaders on paper for the last Grand Tour of the year – the Vuelta a España. Wout van Aert will be starting the three-week stage race for the second time. He will be joined by Matthew Brennan, who will be making his Grand Tour debut.
If everything goes according to plan, Van Aert and Brennan will be the spearheads in the final Grand Tour of the year. For Brennan, this would be his first participation in a three-week race. Consequently, the focus automatically shifts more towards stage wins than the general classification, the team explained Tuesday during a press conference, which WielerFlits attended.
"For the Vuelta's general classification, we can give our other young talents the chance to aim for a good result without placing too much expectation or pressure on them," explains Grischa Niermann, Head of Racing, on the team site.
What does the former rider expect from rising talent Brennan? "Matthew is an important man for the future. He’s still young, so we need to be patient with him. If everything goes according to plan, he will race major events this year like Milan-San Remo, the Tour of Flanders, and the Vuelta a España. He’s mainly going there to learn; we do not expect him to contend for results immediately."
Wout van Aert assesses the damage after his crash in the Vuelta – photo: photo press agency Cor Vos
Sporting redemption for Van Aert?
For Van Aert – who will also contest the Tour de France earlier in the year – the upcoming Vuelta is somewhat about sporting revenge. During his first and so far only participation in 2024, he won no fewer than three stages and appeared on course to win both the points and mountains classifications, but a heavy crash on the sixteenth stage to Lagos de Covadonga ended his hopes.
Van Aert suffered a severe knee injury in this crash, had to end his season prematurely, and faced a long rehabilitation. The Kempen rider returned to racing in December 2024 but was left with lasting scars.
