Simon Yates (Visma | Lease a Bike) has made it crystal clear he wants to return to the Giro d'Italia in 2026 and defend the maglia rosa he won so devastatingly on the Colle delle Finestre this year. Whether his own team let him is another matter.
Speaking at the 2026 route presentation, which confirmed a mountainous race beginning on 8 May in Bulgaria, the 33‑year‑old did not hide his ambition.
"How many people can arrive at a Grand Tour with number one on their back? I think it's pretty unique," Yates told TNT Sport.
"There are still some decisions to be made behind the scenes by the team on whether I'll be here or not, but I would love to defend it."
Yates claimed his first Giro and second career Grand Tour in 2025 by outclimbing Isaac del Toro (UAE Team Emirates‑XRG) and Richard Carapaz (EF Education–EasyPost) on the penultimate stage, then defending his advantage to Rome. The updated 2026 route, stacked with climbing and a single long time trial, again looks tailor‑made for a pure GC leader.
Inside Visma, however, the hierarchy is anything but simple. Jonas Vingegaard (Visma | Lease a Bike) has openly flirted with a Giro start to complete the Grand Tour Triple Crown, having already won the Tour de France in 2022 and 2023 and the Vuelta a España in 2025.
"I think I'd rather win all three Grand Tours," the Dane has said, even while insisting the Tour "remains the biggest goal".
Team sports director Grischa Niermann has repeated that Paris remains the primary objective, and no decision on Giro leadership has yet been taken. For now, Yates is left waiting, his pink‑coloured dream colliding with Vingegaard’s quest for history in one of the most intriguing GC power plays of 2026.
Cover image by Zac Williams/SWpix.com
