Sepp Kuss has played down the idea that he will be a co-leader in the Tour de France for Visma-Lease a Bike, saying that although he has GC ambitions, two-time winners and defending champion Jonas Vingegaard remains very much the team’s number one contender.
In an interview in Wielerflits dating from well before the season started, Kuss was quoted as saying: “Strategically speaking, it doesn't hurt to start with two leaders. I think Jonas and I can also work well together. We have similar qualities in the mountains. It is always good for us to have two riders at the top of the rankings.”
After his breakthrough victory in the Vuelta a España last September, Kuss has rightly raised his GC ambitions. The exit of Primoz Roglic from Visma-Lease A Bike has also opened up further space for Kuss to go for the overall classifications in Grand Tours.
However Kuss has control of his ego and his ambitions.
“Everybody wants to win the Tour, even a sprinter,” Kuss clarified to a small group of reporters, including Cyclingnews, at the Volta ao Algarve.
“I just want to do my best. Last year I realised that I could be up there with the best guys while really not thinking at all about the GC. Now if you look at teams like UAE or other teams, they have a lot of leaders, and you always need a second guy that can go with those multiple cards from a strategic standpoint, especially in the first and second week.”
“In the third week it’s just about the legs. It never hurts but… I’m not delusional. I see the headlines saying ‘Sepp wants to win the Tour’ but everyone wants to win the Tour. Even a sprinter wants to win the Tour but I’m not delusional but I’m not under-ambitious either.”
Kuss pointed out that rather than simply read any dramatic headlines concerning his ambitions and leave it at that, it was important for people to understand the context.
He has set his bar higher than 12 months ago but insisted that was the extent of it.
“Everyone has to look for a headline but people who just read a headline, they think that I’m being…that I don’t have my head on my shoulders,” he suggested.
“But then if I say that I just want to help then people say I don’t have ambition... but if I say I want to try for myself then people say I only won the Vuelta because of a race situation.
"That’s true, but I also have to shoot for something myself. It’s just a matter of if you’re good or not, then it’s less complicated than it’s made out to be. But I’ve no illusions of things that I’m not capable of.”
Kuss outlined his overall programme for 2024, with the Tour de France and Vuelta a España the overriding goals.
His next race is likely to be Strade Bianche, after which he’ll race the Volta a Catalunya, sharing leadership with new signing Cian Uijtdebroeks, then it’ll be onto Itzulia-Basque Country, the Criterium du Dauphine and the Tour de France.
As defending champion, he expects to be back in the front line in the Vuelta a España, where even if Vingegaard returns, his own leadership role will be much more certain than in July.
“I think the Vuelta for me is a bit more defined. It’s better for me if Jonas is there, for example, from a pressure standpoint and a working environment, but it’s a race that fits more with my style. It’s a bit less hectic than the Tour and has some steep climbs, so it fits a bit better for me.”
Kuss took an unexpected sixth in the Clásica Jaén on Monday and impressed after team leader Wout Van Aert suffered a puncture.
Yet he hinted that Jan Tratnik, rather than Wout van Aert, could well be a leader for Visma-Lease A Bike in the Volta ao Algarve. From other sources, it appears likely that Van Aert's aims are more for stage wins this week in Portugal, rather than the overall classification.
“I’m definitely happy. The races I’ve done so far, including this one, aren’t necessarily the ones for me but it’s always good when I can feel good in different styles of races. It’s also pretty fun and there are less expectations. I’m just seeing how it goes.”
“For this week, I’m mainly going to help out Jan. He’s in good shape and he deserves all the help, and then I’ll just get a feel for the racing. It’ll be good for me to do a time trial, and see how it goes there.”
