Budget, Australian switch, and more... 10 things you need to know about Visma | Lease a Bike for 2024 (and beyond)

Visma | Lease a Bike (formerly Jumbo-Visma) unveiled its 2024 plans to a select group of invited guests on Thursday, December 21. Following the presentation, some of the anticipated key players offered additional insights during a dedicated time slot. But what exactly should you take away from the presentation of this highly successful team? IDLProCycling.com breaks it down.

1. Uijtdebroeks in the Visma jersey

The question prior to the performance at MOVE Amsterdam was: what about Cian Uijtdebroeks, the man about whom so much was going on in the final weeks of 2024. The Belgian appeared on stage a little after two with his trademark smile, where he only immediately explained. 'I am very happy with my transfer. Everyone on this team wants to get the most out of it and they all do it with a smile. It's exactly what I was looking for.'

The question preceding the MOVE Amsterdam performance was: what about Cian Uijtdebroeks, the man around whom so much was happening in the final weeks of 2024? The Belgian appeared on stage a little after two with his trademark smile, where he promptly shared, 'I am very happy with my transfer. Everyone on this team wants to get the most out of it, and they all do it with a smile. It's exactly what I was looking for.'

What was not clear at that time was precisely how things had been arranged regarding his transfer. Richard Plugge informed us immediately after the presentation that everything was settled. 'It worked out well, with a good outcome for the whole thing. Cian is on the podium with us, and we are very happy about that, and so is Cian. Whether BORA-hansgrohe is happy with this? You have to ask them that.'

The amusing part: when Uijtdebroeks himself spoke to the press a few minutes later, he did not know the details. The Belgian was still talking about "a thousand possibilities" around 4:30 p.m. ET. 'I don't want to speak ill of BORA-hansgrohe; that's not why I'm here. In the background, I am being spoken to, and I hope we will be out very soon.'

The friendly Belgian's wish was quickly granted: at the stroke of half-past six, BORA-hansgrohe came with the message that it was resolved. "It's a day with mixed feelings," Ralph Denk began his message. "The dust has finally settled, and it's all resolved. Case closed," he said.

2. Van Aert is dealing with crosses, not with stripes

The central figure in the Visma | Lease a Bike event was, of course, Wout van Aert again. For the Belgian, days like this are serious working days: he was the only one assigned fifty minutes in the mixed zone, and then also had to speak to the press. Just before that, he also had to explain himself on the podium, as well as model the new jersey. The life of a cyclist...

Van Aert's goal for 2024 may be clear: Flanders and Roubaix, still the currently significant gaps on his list of honors. Otherwise, after several years of the Tour de France, the Belgian is now opting for the Giro-Tour combo, something that fits completely into Van Aert's philosophy: explore new races, ensure he doesn't get into a rut, and prioritize certain wins and achievements over victories.

Thus, his participation in the Tour of Switzerland, the World Gravel Championship, and recently a Gran Fondo in Colombia fit that bill, as well as his first races for 2024. Those will be the beautiful gravel race Jaén Paraiso Interior and the Tour of the Algarve, races he has not yet contested. Through the Opening Weekend - oddly enough, he's never ridden Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne either - he'll move up in altitude, to return for E3 Saxo Classic and move on to the Giro.

"That is also with a view to the Olympics. If you want to attack that well, you also need the time to prepare yourself for the Olympic time trial," Plugge stated.

3. Vingegaard and Kuss do the same for Visma | Lease a Bike as they did at Jumbo-Visma

While Van Aert prefers to adopt a different approach every year, the same is certainly not true for Jonas Vingegaard and Sepp Kuss. The tour riders, who were so successful in 2023, will largely opt for the same approach next season as in the past seasons. Vingegaard will again start in O Gran Camino, then work toward the Tour via Tirreno-Adriatico (last year's Paris-Nice), the Tour of the Basque Country, and the Critérium du Dauphiné.

Kuss, who also enjoys taking the gravel bike with Robert Gesink in Andorra, will start, like Van Aert, in Jaén Paraiso Interior. He will then focus on the Tour de Catalunya but mainly on his hunting ground: the Tour and Vuelta grand tours, where he will, of course, defend his title in the latter. Whether Vingegaard will also be here is not yet entirely certain. Visma | Lease a Bike will present the final team later in 2024.

"Last year was historic, of course, and as defending champion, we are always ambitious, but our concrete plans for the Vuelta will be finalized later," Merijn Zeeman said.

4. Absence of Van Hooydonck is greater than that of Roglic

Those who exited the MOVE building in Amsterdam after a good three hours of presentation and conversation did not hear Primoz Roglic's name mentioned all that often. The Slovenian recently made the switch to BORA Hansgrohe, but it was Nathan Van Hooydonck who was mentioned several times as missing by riders and staff of the Dutch formation.

Of course, Roglic was mentioned in the same breath as Tadej Pogacar and Remco Evenepoel as Tour competitors for Vingegaard. 'He wanted a team that would go completely for him, but we couldn't do that. Primoz is gone, but we have a lot of good riders who can form a tremendously strong team there, especially given the Tour course,' Plugge was referring to the selection that includes Vingegaard, Kuss, Tiesj Benoot, Christophe Laporte, Steven Kruijswijk, Jan Tratnik, Matteo Jorgenson, and Dylan van Baarle.

Both Van Aert and Vingegaard mentioned Van Hooydonck explicitly. "It will be different in the spring without Nathan, but with Matteo, Jan, and also Per Strand Hagenes, we have a strong team again in depth," Van Aert said. Vingegaard must now do without both Van Hooydonck and Van Aert in the Tour de France, with Laporte the most suitable figure to protect him. "Wout is one of the best riders in the world, but we are also going to miss Nathan. Hopefully, we can win the Tour without them for the third year."

5. Everyone satisfied with the schedule!

While in past years there were occasional murmurs here and there about the schedules of various riders, by the end of 2023, it was scrutinized with a magnifying glass for riders walking with a glum face or talking with the brakes on. Olav Kooij in a grand tour? Check. Van Aert toward the Giro and Vuelta instead of the Tour? Check.

Moving forward, Vingegaard and Kuss? Already covered, check. Recruit Jorgenson heading to hometown Nice to do his thing in Paris-Nice and be part of the Tour overall? Check. Uijtdebroeks getting to go for his own chances in the Giro with Wilco Kelderman as a free agent? Check. Laporte, who, when possible, can also get his freedom later in the Tour? Check. Kruijswijk and Van Baarle as prized pawns for the Tour and Gesink in his final season before the Vuelta? Check.

The puzzle for Zeeman and company must have been more challenging at times, which cannot be separated from the departure of Roglic. Finally, for the most part, the noses seem to be pointed in the same direction, which is usually a task for the best team in the world anyway.

6. What exactly happened with that whole merger story and sponsor troubles?

So, Visma | Lease a Bike is the name for 2024, but of course, a whole story preceded that. Amazon, Soudal Quick-Step, Evenepoel... they have all come under review in recent months. Plugge mainly wanted to talk about the partners the team does have in 2024. 'We have had continuous contact. Visma indicated very early that they wanted that first name, and Pon (of Lease a Bike, ed.) indicated that they wanted to stay with us and could possibly take other steps.'

"About that merger? I was in the eye of the storm, but outside that storm, it was mostly raging. We knew internally what we were doing," the manager said. "Maybe with external partners, we could have made a nice move too, but we were able to make very good arrangements with existing partners. How nice is it to be able to continue that, as we did with Jumbo a few years ago?" Plugge answers the question he asks himself.

7. Long-term plans and budget of Visma | Lease a Bike also secured

With Fem van Empel (2027), Kuss (2027), and Vingegaard (2028), Plugge and Visma | Lease a Bike once again succeeded in firmly cementing long-term planning. Two riders and the emerging Dutch women's talent who have been at the root of success in recent years thus remain part of the team that aims to make sports history this decade.

In the background, the team is gradually preparing a younger generation to take over. Then we are talking about WorldTour talents like Uijtdebroeks, Hagenes, and Johannes Staune-Mittet, but also from the underpromise team, riders like Tijmen Graat, Jorgen Nordhagen, and Menno Huising already have a contract through 2027 in their pocket.

Long-term planning, of course, also requires a budget. Plugge declined to put a figure on it, but this is estimated at around 40 million euros for 2024. And, more importantly, this will grow with the team over the next few years. 'We have been able to make a nice step in terms of budget and also make good deals," said the Dutchman, indicating that they are still not the richest team. "It's a smaller budget than the biggest three teams, also because the average budget has gone up again quite a bit.

8. What about the man who wasn't there? Hessmann doping case still unresolved

For further clarification, you can visit this article, but in the doping case surrounding German rider Michel Hessmann, there is still no resolution. "We don't know," was Plugge's simple answer. "That his B sample was also positive is known to us. But then you would think that there would be a punishment or not, but that is not up to us. That is up to the NADA, the German doping authority. We are waiting for that, and that is very unsatisfactory for all parties, so in that sense, it is a long wait."

Plugge then thinks especially of the person behind the rider-Hessmann. "That's annoying, for everyone. You just want clarity. We want that too, but certainly also for him personally. He is doing reasonably well under the circumstances, but of course, it is not fun. You are dealing with a young boy who may or may not see his dream of turning pro fall apart. The fact that it is taking so long is a bit of a problem."

9. What are main objectives for 2024?

After winning the Vuelta, Zeeman revealed that winning the three grand tours had been drafted in advance as a starting point for 2023. For 2024, the team is not going for a copy-paste tactic, especially as the importance of the two cobbled monuments in the spring will be emphasized even more. This gap on the palmares must be filled, and preferably as soon as possible.

"Ambitious goals that you can expect from our team," Zeeman said. "We want to continue making sports history, and we will do that if we accomplish those goals together next year. It remains a dream to win one of those monuments, and we are going to do everything we can again to make that dream come true."

With that, the team is going for stage wins with Kooij and Van Aert in the Giro, and Uijtdebroeks wants to see how far he can get there. "Whether that's fourth or ninth, as long as I learn from it," said the recruit. At the Tour, the goal is a bit clearer; winning is what counts. "We also believe in our approach and will make sure we have a good plan again," Vingegaard told.

10. Visma | Lease a Bike aims to make immediate impact in Australia

The 2024 WorldTour calendar will, of course, kick off again in Australia with the Tour Down Under and Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race scheduled successively. Neoprof Loe van Belle recently revealed the (preliminary) selection for that race, but one change has been made: Lennard Hofstede, who the team says is "not available" and did not attend the team presentation, will be replaced by newcomer Bart Lemmen.

Lemmen and Van Belle, along with Staune-Mittet, Gesink, Mick van Dijke, and Milan Vader, will travel to the land of kangaroos and koalas in early January. Vader is the leader on duty: the Zeeuw ended 2023 on an absolute high by winning the Tour of Guangxi and is only too happy to show himself in the Australian stage race.

"They are explosive stages that suit me," Vader stated. Lemmen indicated he wanted to learn and soak up information above all, while Gesink will kick off his final pro season Down Under like last year. On January 5 and 6, the men will fly business class to the other side of the world. And there a new cycling year begins!