Piganzoli has had the kind of first year at Visma | Lease a Bike that normally takes two or three. Overall wins at La Route d’Occitanie and the Tour de Luxembourg, two Grand Tours completed with eighth overall at the Giro d’Italia while riding for Vingegaard, and a solo victory at the Giro dell’Emilia, the first by an Italian since 2018.

Speaking to La Gazzetta dello Sport ahead of Il Lombardia, the Italian said the jump had surprised even him.

“I expected growth, but a gradual kind. Instead, it was a major leap in quality, not just in terms of performance and results, but physically as well.”

He credited the environment at Visma, and one teammate in particular, for the shift.

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Vingegaard’s message from the sofa

Vingegaard has not raced since fracturing his collarbone on stage 15 of the Tour de France. Visma confirmed in August that their Danish leader would not return in 2026, with sports director Marc Reef saying it was best for him “to focus on 2027”. That has left Vingegaard watching from home while his younger teammates close out the season.

One of the races he was watching was Piganzoli’s overall win at the Tour of Luxembourg, and the Italian said a short message from the Dane left a mark.

“He messaged me to say that he was watching me during the Tour de Luxembourg. That really meant a lot to me. He’s a role model and an inspiration to me.”

“Jonas remains very calm within the group until the key moment of the competition arrives. Then, even if something goes wrong, he never stops believing in himself, the team, and what he has done to reach that point.”

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A 2027 built around the Dane

Visma are now preparing to sit down with Vingegaard to shape next season. In an interview over the summer that triggered the planning, Vingegaard admitted he had thought about walking away because of the toll Grand Tour training was taking on his family life, prompting Reef to promise fresh talks once the season ended.

“Next winter we will look at his programme again,” Reef said.

Vingegaard himself has already floated new targets for 2027, pointing to the Tour de Romandie and the Tour de Suisse as races he has never won. Both sit awkwardly in a calendar he has traditionally built around the Dauphiné and the Tour de France.

Piganzoli eyes his own Grand Tour

The question hovering over Piganzoli is whether he spends 2027 as Vingegaard’s climber or gets a Grand Tour of his own. He has not pushed for it, but he has not ruled it out either.

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“I’m confident that I can be the team leader in a Grand Tour in 2027, but we still need to discuss that with the team.”

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