Visma | Lease a Bike as pioneers? How an analysis tactic from Formula 1 was brought into cycling

The nickname of Visma | Lease a Bike, "the killer bees," is no coincidence. Led by CEO Richard Plugge, the Dutch WorldTour team has been performing more than commendably for years. Winning the three grand tours in 2023 was certainly the delicious icing on an already extremely tasty cake. The team has also been thriving in the classics for many years. And one notable aspect might have contributed to this success...

We find ourselves at the Ghelamco Arena, home of the KAA Gent football club, where a press conference for Visma | Lease a Bike is held on Friday, March 29, obviously in the run-up to the Tour of Flanders. Who are in attendance? Marianne Vos and Fem van Empel as the faces of the women's team, Merijn Zeeman and Grischa Niermann as team directors/sports directors of the men's squad, and Matteo Jorgenson and Tiesj Benoot as the leading men in the men's race (due to the absence of Wout van Aert).

Visma | Lease a Bike leaders not afraid of Van der Poel

First and foremost, the conversation turned to the situation and physical condition of the Flemish superstar, who, as known, unfortunately crashed in Dwars door Vlaanderen. "We're here with mixed feelings. Wout is in the hospital, but in the meantime, we still have to prepare for the Tour of Flanders," Zeeman explained, after which Niermann - who had visited Van Aert that morning in the hospital - provided more details. "He's doing okay, but he's still in a lot of pain, mainly from the abrasions. It's not yet clear when he can go home, also because of those abrasions," the German said.

Flanders' Finest was, of course, a topic that had to be discussed. "We definitely want to support Wout, but we also have to do our best to achieve results on Sunday," Zeeman aptly described. Thus, the race will have to be tackled with Jorgenson and Benoot - the winner and fourth-place finisher in Dwars door Vlaanderen, respectively - as the key players. "We're not afraid of him, but of course, he plays a big part in our plan," the 30-year-old from Ghent mentioned regarding the strategy against the in-form world champion, Mathieu van der Poel.

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"We have the winner of Dwars Door Vlaanderen on our team, which certainly gives us confidence," Zeeman, known for his sharp comments, added. "The resilience shown is also something we can truly build on. Looking back at the history of this team, you see that we've faced a lot of adversity but always come back very strong."

From Formula 1 to cycling: Zeeman explains

After Zeeman left the press conference stage and it was time for interviews with Benoot and Jorgenson, there was an opportunity to speak one-on-one with with the team director. IDLProCycling.com took this chance for some lighter questions, after extensively discussing the impacted Van Aert with the group. During Dwars door Vlaanderen, Zeeman and team director Arthur van Dongen were not seen in the team car but rather sitting in the team bus.

"That's right! I've done that a few times last year too," he explained upon being asked. "We do that to create some distance. This way, we have a better overview of the race. It allows us to better observe what's happening in the race. Moreover, it gives us a clearer view of what other teams are doing and where we ourselves are positioned."

Something to continue with? Absolutely, it turns out. "Indeed, it's something we want to keep doing this year. Plus, you get plenty of legroom in the bus," Zeeman jokes. Such a 'analyze from the bus' tactic seems to have been inspired by Formula 1, where operations are conducted from the so-called paddock. "The paddock, the area behind the garages. Here you'll find the teams' guest areas, service trucks, and mobile data centers," describes the F1 website clearly. "Indeed, that's where the idea came from," Zeeman confirms. "That's absolutely right."

How Visma | Lease a Bike hopes to beat Van der Poel

Interestingly, these Formula 1 similarities were also mentioned in an article by Het Nieuwsblad, where cycling legend José De Cauwer interviewed the team director. "In Formula 1, teams have a control room on the other side of the world for a reason. Precisely for the distance and with all available info to make decisions. In a race like the Tour of Flanders, we organize ourselves in a similar manner."

And in that context, you obviously have to pay close attention to the competition. "We have to do that, for example, to beat Mathieu van der Poel. He's that good. You see he tries to create scenarios where everyone is so exhausted that there's no organization or control left. We want to have an answer for that. Many riders burn out trying to follow him again and again. We map out those kinds of things."