‘For a guy my size, it’d be a big challenge’ - Matteo Jorgenson rules out Grand Tour ambitions
American says he’s not a three-week option for Visma-Lease a Bike
For all his talent, Matteo Jorgenson believes he is not suited to competing for Grand Tours.
The American won the eight-stage Paris-Nice last month, raising questions of whether he could repeat the success over three weeks.
Speaking to Cycling Weekly, however, he explained he "hadn't thought about" any Grand Tour ambitions, which he feels are "out of reach" for riders like him.
"I think, for a guy my size, it'd be a pretty big challenge to go for three weeks with so much energy demand," said 24-year-old, who is 6ft 3in (190cm). "That’s basically the biggest limiting factor. I just have a much bigger frame than most of these guys, and it’s really difficult to see how I would maintain that over three weeks."
Doubts have been cast over Visma-Lease a Bike's Grand Tour prospects this season, with three-time Vuelta a España winner Primož Roglič leaving to join Bora-Hansgrohe, and reigning Tour de France champion Jonas Vingegaard suffering multiple fractures at Itzulia Basque Country.
Sepp Kuss, last year's Vuelta winner, is expected to receive more leadership opportunities this year, but Jorgenson does not see himself as a card to play.
"We haven't seen a guy my size winning Grand Tours since maybe [Miguel] Induráin," he said. "I think, nowadays, the energy demands are really so high that when you scale it from a guy like Jonas to a guy like me, I just need so much more energy to get over the mountain days.
Get The Leadout Newsletter
The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!
"One-week races I can get through pretty well. It's when it's chained together over three, four days between 3,000 and 4,000 metres [of climbing], I don't think I could recover well enough. Obviously that's just me theorising, I've never tried it."
Stepping up
Jorgenson has been one of the revelations of the season so far. After winning Paris-Nice, he was thrust into an early leadership role in the Classics – a side effect of Wout van Aert's injuries – and claimed victory at Dwars door Vlaanderen.
Joining Visma-Lease a Bike, the American explained, has brought a marked step up to his career.
"It's been unreal," he said. "I just wasn't aware of the scope of organisation here. There's a bunch of jobs that I didn't even know existed in a cycling team."
"I was just having a meeting with the head of apparel, who's a former rider, Paul Martens, and his only job is to be in charge of all the cycling clothing. He tries to meet with the riders and get all of our feedback to see if there are any issues and then make orders. It's a job I never knew existed. But then once you have him, you realise it's actually really important. You can make a big difference with the clothing."
Last year, at Movistar, Jorgenson revealed he invested his own money into his performance, spending all of his salary from January until June on training and equipment.
"I was quite motivated to move to one of the best teams. That was really in my head as a goal," he explained. "I thought of it as one year to go all in and just hold nothing back.
"It was difficult at times, mostly because I did a lot of it completely alone. Organising altitude camps on my own, hiring a soigneur, organising all the logistics for them, then cooking everything after doing really hard training, you get a lot of perspective on what is actually behind you, which you might not realise.
"If I came up in a team like I'm in right now, I would probably have no knowledge of what a team does or what goes on behind the scenes," he added. "For me, [Visma-Lease a Bike] is the best environment I could be in. It makes me a lot happier, and it's a lot easier to do my job."
Thank you for reading 20 articles this month* Join now for unlimited access
Enjoy your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
*Read 5 free articles per month without a subscription
Join now for unlimited access
Try first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
Tom joined Cycling Weekly as a news and features writer in the summer of 2022, having previously contributed as a freelancer. He is the host of The TT Podcast, which covers both the men's and women's pelotons and has featured a number of prominent British riders.
An enthusiastic cyclist himself, Tom likes it most when the road goes uphill and actively seeks out double-figure gradients on his rides.
He's also fluent in French and Spanish and holds a master's degree in International Journalism.
-
Why do coffee and cycling go together so well? An investigation
Coffee connoisseur Adam Becket delves into the storied yet mysterious relationship between cycling and the original energy drink
By Adam Becket Published
-
'I’ve been battered by the cycling community for wearing normal clothes, not to mention not using a helmet' - Chris Boardman on riding for utility, and sport
Chris Boardman and author Tom Babin both advocate shifting the mindset away from tribalistic 'sport cycling' and 'commute cycling' to a more rounded approach
By Hannah Bussey Published
-
Wout van Aert’s Classics dreams go up in smoke, but all is not lost for Visma-Lease a Bike
Attention turns to another promising squad member after their talisman is ruled out of Tour of Flanders, Paris-Roubaix and Amstel-Gold Race with 'several fractures'
By Tom Thewlis Published
-
Wout van Aert 'in a good place' ahead of Tour of Flanders despite Visma-Lease a Bike illness and injury crisis
Loss of Christophe Laporte and Dylan van Baarle 'a big blow' says DS Grischa Niermann as team builds for Monument double header
By Tom Thewlis Published
-
Sepp Kuss calls for patience on his form as he declares 'I still have room to grow'
The Grand Tour winner is on course for his second successive one week stage race top-10
By Chris Marshall-Bell Published
-
Wout van Aert gears towards career-defining fortnight in new, enlightened mindset
Belgian admits pressure has weighed heavily on his shoulders in the past as the Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix come around once more
By Tom Thewlis Published
-
Visma-Lease a Bike say they want to be the All Blacks or Chicago Bulls of cycling, but is this possible?
The Dutch super team might be winning it all, but can they create a legacy?
By Adam Becket Published
-
Matteo Jorgenson seals American dream with overall victory at Paris-Nice
Remco Evenepoel wins eighth and final stage in rain-soaked 'Race to the Sun'
By Tom Davidson Published
-
'All the conditions are met, then it's questioned again' - Visma-Lease a Bike bemoan UCI review after 'a lot of money' spent on development of Giro helmet
Team reacts to governing body statement on Tuesday, day after new helmet was debuted
By Tom Thewlis Published
-
Matteo Jorgenson, Visma-Lease a Bike’s new star, continues to impress at Paris-Nice
The American could step into the leaders yellow jersey on Tuesday evening after stage three’s team time trial in Auxerre
By Tom Thewlis Published