Second Tour and for the Vuelta. Jonas Vingegaard already has his new goal: the red jersey. Shortly before starting the last stage of the French round, the Dane announced in several interviews that he will participate in the Tour of Spain. In the Jumbo he will share the lead with Primoz Roglic, winner of the last Giro and three Vueltas.
“I am ready for the Vuelta a España this year. I will be at the start line in Barcelona, together, Primoz and me. We will both go as leaders. I'm looking forward to it”, Vingegaard revealed in conversation with the newspaper Marca.
One month and three days after the end of the Tour, the Vuelta starts in Barcelona (August 26) with a team time trial. In addition to his partner, Vingegaard will have other important rivals in the race. They have also confirmed the presence of him Evenepoel, winner of 2022, Enric Mas and Juan Ayuso, second and third, respectively last year, Geraint Thomas, Richard Carapaz or Lenny Martínez, the new French hope.
Since the Vuelta is the third major in the calendar order, the Tour-Vuelta double has only been achieved once. It was the British Chris Froome, who in 2017 managed to succeed in Paris and Madrid. No one else since the 1995 date change.
However, the Dane is good at competing in Spanish territory. In fact, this season he has won the two races he has contested: O Gran Camiño, at the end of February, and La Itzulia, at the beginning of April.
Last year after winning his first Tour, the Danish Jumbo rider was away from the competition for some time. He did not reappear until two months after his triumph in Paris, to ride the Tour of Croatia, which started on September 27 and which he also won. In Il Lombardia he participated but did not get into the fight for the win.
Vingegaard already knows the Tour of Spain. It was the first big one that he did, back in October 2020, the season of the pandemic. The Dane was one of the helpers, along with Kuss and George Bennett, in Primoz Roglic's Jumbo for the Slovenian to win the second of his three Laps.
Now, as a double winner of the Tour, Vingegaard will appear at the start of Barcelona with more stripes and aspirations.
