Simon Yates strolled into a packed Visma-Lease a Bike press conference on the eve of the Tour de France with most assuming he is set to play a supporting role to Jonas Vingegaard across the next three weeks.
Just weeks ago, the Bury-born rider dramatically turned the tables on Isaac del Toro (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) at the Giro d’Italia, banishing his demons on the Colle delle Finestre to pull the maglia rosa from the shoulders of the young Mexican at the last minute. But Yates has never realistically come close to winning the Tour; his teammate, Vingegaard, has won two.
The 32-year-old is in the form of his life, seemingly, after that successful Giro. While he told the gathered media that he is "under no illusions" regarding his apparent position in the team, he also did not rule out the possibility of aiming for GC.
“I'm not going to purposely lose time, unless something happens, because you never know,” Yates said. "I think we'll maybe keep the option open. But Jonas is the man."
In all of his appearances at the Tour to date, Yates led Jayco-AlUla with free reign in the mountains to chase stage wins, something he did twice in 2019. Yates has not yet ridden with Jonas Vingegaard since making the switch to Visma in the off season, but he said he was relishing the chance to ride with a "big champion".
"I've never really done that role, to be honest," he said, referencing his new identity as a support rider in a Grand Tour. "I'm not, let's say, afraid to do that role, I think I can do a really good job, but it will be something new for me. Earlier in the year, I was supposed to ride with him at the Volta a Catalunya, but I think after the set back he had in Paris-Nice it didn't happen. But we'll make it work."
"I've only really been with him on certain training camps, in Tignes and at the start of the year," he added. "He's a really easy person to work with, relaxed, but very professional. He just covers all the details, as you would expect from somebody of such a high level and to race with him, I'm actually quite looking forward to it, racing with him."
Yates has had little time to celebrate his Giro win, with his suitcases barely unpacked before he was heading off to Tignes to prepare for the Tour.
"It sounds ridiculous, but I'm still in disbelief that I managed to pull it off," Yates said. "Morale is high, and hopefully, I can continue with those feelings for the rest of this race, too."
