Teams & Riders The Remco Evenepoel is the next Eddy Merckx thread

[AdonisP91]

Interesting.

I heard reports of "allergies". If even close to true, the dude should see an allergist.

Otherwise, I would not be surprised if he has gotten himself into an energy deficient state, like RED-S. I think they have been following an old weight loss strategy (similar to Sky), but that ain't gonna work no more, and he would be digging himself into a big hole

I think this is a big factor. The other guys stay lean all year and train and build their base lean. Maybe they are 1-2 kgs higher in the off season than their race weight. Remco’s natural weight is higher and he always has to drop 4-5kgs before the big races.

 

[Gratemans]

You know, you might be on to something, I think his weight hasn't really been covered in this thread yet.

 

[Ulle97]

What do you guys think would be a target for Remco for the rest of the season?

I'm not sure he will be able to target a Grand Tour GC again. He needs a few factors in his favour.

1. No Pogacar or Vingegaard at said Grand Tour. He simply cannot compete with them. Nor can any other rider in the world.

2. A GT light on hard mountain stages. The climbs in this year's Tour were simply too hard.

3. A GT heavy on TT kms. At least 2 TTs that are 30-40km long.

4. A strong team around him. He doesn't have this at SQS.

 

[Berniece]

If the crash is not so severe, then he has enough time to build a base for the tour, it’s his fault if he trained instead for the classics.

That’s what everyone has been saying since he collapsed during the TDF. Good that you are now caught up. I blame SOQ staff for not guiding him well enough.

 

[Red Rick]

What do you guys think would be a target for Remco for the rest of the season?

I'm not sure he will be able to target a Grand Tour GC again. He needs a few factors in his favour.

1. No Pogacar or Vingegaard at said Grand Tour. He simply cannot compete with them. Nor can any other rider in the world.

2. A GT light on hard mountain stages. The climbs in this year's Tour were simply too hard.

3. A GT heavy on TT kms. At least 2 TTs that are 30-40km long.

4. A strong team around him. He doesn't have this at SQS.

There is not enough good one day races in the world to stop focusing on GTs. If I'm Evenepoel I'm doing Sanremo, RVV, Liege and then Giro/Vuelta double next season.

 

[AmRacer]

What do you guys think would be a target for Remco for the rest of the season?

I'm not sure he will be able to target a Grand Tour GC again. He needs a few factors in his favour.

1. No Pogacar or Vingegaard at said Grand Tour. He simply cannot compete with them. Nor can any other rider in the world.

2. A GT light on hard mountain stages. The climbs in this year's Tour were simply too hard.

3. A GT heavy on TT kms. At least 2 TTs that are 30-40km long.

4. A strong team around him. He doesn't have this at SQS.

He could do
Clasica San Remco
At least one one week stage racing
European Championship
Worls TT

 

[Berniece]

What do you guys think would be a target for Remco for the rest of the season?

I'm not sure he will be able to target a Grand Tour GC again. He needs a few factors in his favour.

1. No Pogacar or Vingegaard at said Grand Tour. He simply cannot compete with them. Nor can any other rider in the world.

2. A GT light on hard mountain stages. The climbs in this year's Tour were simply too hard.

3. A GT heavy on TT kms. At least 2 TTs that are 30-40km long.

4. A strong team around him. He doesn't have this at SQS.

I disagree, at the moment if Evenepoel stays at this level the only thing he needs to win a GT is your first point. The rest is not a problem since he’s better than everyone else, shown last year.

 

[Peyroteo94]

There is not enough good one day races in the world to stop focusing on GTs.

If I'm Evenepoel I'm doing Sanremo, RVV, Liege and then Giro/Vuelta double

This schedule is unrealistic. Where will he do the altitude training camp before the Giro?

 

[AmRacer]

I disagree, at the moment if Evenepoel stays at this level the only thing he needs to win a GT is your first point. The rest is not a problem since he’s better than everyone else, shown last year.

That was last year, it's history now.

 

[Charlyghoul]

What do you guys think would be a target for Remco for the rest of the season?

I'm not sure he will be able to target a Grand Tour GC again. He needs a few factors in his favour.

1. No Pogacar or Vingegaard at said Grand Tour. He simply cannot compete with them. Nor can any other rider in the world.

2. A GT light on hard mountain stages. The climbs in this year's Tour were simply too hard.

3. A GT heavy on TT kms. At least 2 TTs that are 30-40km long.

4. A strong team around him. He doesn't have this at SQS.

I think the main thing, is he needs to realise he isn’t Pogacar, he can’t go for everything It just isn’t going to work.

 

[Berniece]

I think the main thing, is he needs to realise he isn’t Pogacar, he can’t go for everything It just isn’t going to work.

He can though. If he would win that's a different question.

 

[Charlyghoul]

He can though. If he would win that's a different question.

He’s been trying and he can’t. Only Pogacar since many years of riders can do it.

 

[Berniece]

According to several posters here, the shoulder is what killed him at the tour.
The team now again? It’s like they hate Remco and the ds pushed him in to that ravine and pushed him off his bike again in December.

No, that's not what people have been saying. People are saying his crash killed him at the Tour, and not a wide enough base.

 

[Charlyghoul]

No, that's not what people have been saying. People are saying his crash killed him at the Tour, and not a wide enough base.

every year there’s a reason of why he’s ‘underperforming’, that’s the thing people don’t like. We don’t hear this with anybody else.

 

[Berniece]

every year there’s a reason of why he’s ‘underperforming’, that’s the thing people don’t like. We don’t hear this with anybody else.

People didn't say anything in 2022, you know why? Because there wasn't a good reason for underperforming. And you should really stop speaking in absolutes. As if people in Roglic, Vingegaard or Pogacar topic never said the rider underperformed due to a crash. You are "new", but maybe checkout those topics.

 

[KoopaCycling]

I commented this some time ago already.

He needs a break, get healthy, build his base, come back for october for UEC Road race (& TT) and Lombardi.
Those 3 races, if he falls short it don't matter much. And he can just think of them as part of his build up for 2026.
2025 is mostly a wash. Aside from having a go at those 3 races, he should do a Vingegaard from last year, and focus on next year.

If they do decide to add some races, i would view them as mostly data points, see how he recovers, ... .
As already said i would not race before october. But if he does race i'd guess i would consider

August
-Bemer classic (possibly too soon)
-Circuit Franco-Belge
- Bretagne Classic

September
- Tour of Britain

- Then in october the real goal of UEC Road Race (&TT)
-Give Lombardi a go

Possibly finish the season with Chrono des Nations.

I would probably skip San Sebastian, as he is probably doing no training at all, and san sebastian is right after the tour.
I would def. skip Vuelta, WC, and Canada classics.

 

[Charlyghoul]

People didn't say anything in 2022, you know why? Because there wasn't a good reason for underperforming. And you should really stop speaking in absolutes. As if people in Roglic, Vingegaard or Pogacar topic never said the rider underperformed due to a crash. You are "new", but maybe checkout those topics.

Not the same extent, I never hear this.
I was racing before kinetic chains and water bottles were invented.

 

[Berniece]

Not the same extent, I never hear this.
I was racing before kinetic chains and water bottles were invented.

What do you know about “hearing this”, your account is a week old. Like I said, go to Vingegaard’s topic and see if anyone said he was underperforming last year due to his crash.

 

[Charlyghoul]

What do you know about “hearing this”, your account is a week old. Like I said, go to Vingegaard’s topic and see if anyone said he was underperforming last year due to his crash.

What are we even discussing here?
I’ve said a couple of times Remco is finishing third at the tour no matter how his season goes, at best. He’s mentally broken from not being the best. The others Roglic Vingegaard just get on with it,

 

[Red Rick]

There is not enough good one day races in the world to stop focusing on GTs. If I'm Evenepoel I'm doing Sanremo, RVV, Liege and then Giro/Vuelta double next season.

Oh, rest of season. My bad. Just Worlds ITT + RR with focus on ITT.

 

[AmRacer]

What do you know about “hearing this”, your account is a week old. Like I said, go to Vingegaard’s topic and see if anyone said he was underperforming last year due to his crash.

Vingo was underperforming with a stable 2nd and crushing a few records

 

[Charlyghoul]

He should definitely go to the worlds, just because he’s dnf’d the tour he can still do well at the worlds.
Forget about vuelta

 

[Berniece]

What are we even discussing here?
I’ve said a couple of times Remco is finishing third at the tour no matter how his season goes, at best. He’s mentally broken from not being the best. The others Roglic Vingegaard just get on with it,

We are discussing you saying that only in this topic people look for excuses. I said no, look at Vingegaard, Pogacar and Roglic topic.

When a rider underperforms there’s a good reason for it. Pointing them out, isn’t looking for excuses. Taking them into account to estimate future performances, isn’t being delusional.

 

[Charlyghoul]

We are discussing you saying that only in this topic people look for excuses. I said no, look at Vingegaard, Pogacar and Roglic topic.

When a rider underperforms there’s a good reason for it. Pointing them out, isn’t looking for excuses. Taking them into account to estimate future performances, isn’t being delusional.

Remco’s level is podium at best, this is the thing.
His fans seem to put him on a pedestal where he should be pushing Pogacar and Vingo if he were in some kind of perfect mythical condition which does not exist for him.

 

[AmRacer]

Remco seems to be underperforming, every time he doesn't win. And there's an explanation/excuse for it. 😆