It's a great shot but it is not a cover. VP's art direction is a mess. Years ago their use of typography was stunning and felt so chic and expensive, but now it's terrible and this poor arrangement doesn't help.
There's an art to crafting a cover, even an unconventional one such as this. I'm all for playing around with the rules but you can't just use any old shot from the editorial, stick some type over the top and call it a day (as evidenced by many of today's magazines attempts at subscriber's covers.) Maybe it's just me but I want a well-crafted, balanced and considered cover and I want this kind of shot inside of the magazine where you can fully appreciate it.
Like I said, the photograph itself is fantastic, the blue is so enticing and I'm looking forward to the rest of the shoot, but this is not a cover. Maybe it will grow on me, but at the moment I'm not convinced.