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

[Red Rick]

I still think he should have done the Vuelta, mainly as training. Then he could def play a big role in the giro (if it has enough TTs.

Maybe, maybe not.

The main goal was the Olympics, and it's hard peaking for that en route to La Vuelta. It's not a training race either. What are you gonna do there?

He's mainly aiming for the Worlds it seems, but I wouldn't have minded seeing him in some more climbing races, though La Vuelta is very likely too much.

Also, for the Giro having enough ITTs, it depends much more on his climbing than the route. You need to be within ~2 minutes for 30km ITT more or less to make a huge difference.

Is he planning on doing the Italian fall classics?

 

[Tinnekeisabella]

Maybe, maybe not.

The main goal was the Olympics, and it's hard peaking for that en route to La Vuelta. It's not a training race either. What are you gonna do there?

He's mainly aiming for the Worlds it seems, but I wouldn't have minded seeing him in some more climbing races, though La Vuelta is very likely too much.

Also, for the Giro having enough ITTs, it depends much more on his climbing than the route. You need to be within ~2 minutes for 30km ITT more or less to make a huge difference.

Is he planning on doing the Italian fall classics?

For now Il Lomabardia is still on his schedule but I remember Lefevre also saying Remco would do only races close to home the rest of the season.

I just think finishing a GT would make Remco stronger, but being Remco it wont be easy to like ride the Vuelta easily. People will expect him to shine again even if he would say it was only a Vuelta to become stronger.

I just think they are not a lot of other suitable options. A type of tirreno, dauphine would be good, but you dont really have those types of races at this point in the season.

 

[hayneplane]

I don't think so. Lefevre didn't have to push Remco anywhere; Evenepoel showed more than enough eagerness and over-confidence of his own.

Then again, if I had my own PR-manager here posting daily treatises about my supreme abilities, perhaps I'd start to belief in my self a bit too much as well.

It would still show a team determined to push a star rider out into the field of battle short of the required condition. Bennett had the experience and judgement not to allow himself to be put in that position whereas Remco was an equally willing party and was in need of wise heads in the team to gently hold him back and take the return to racing more gradually.

 

[18-Valve. (pithy)]

For now Il Lomabardia is still on his schedule but I remember Lefevre also saying Remco would do only races close to home the rest of the season.

Lombardia is closer to his hometown than where the stages of the Tour of Denmark are situated. Neither are close to where he lives. But I guess that's Lefevere being Lefevere.

 

[Barnacle Bill]

Remco playing down the expectations but aiming to get in some echelon practice in Denmark

The Deceuninck-QuickStep rider admitted that the flat route and windy location doesn't suit him but that he aims to practice riding in the echelons.

“The most important thing for me is to learn to ride in echelons here," Evenepoel said in a report in Nieuwsblad. "If you're not in the right range here, you can pack your suitcase and go home. We have a lot of experienced guys on the team who can teach me.”

The Tour of Denmark will be Evenepoel's first race after returning to Europe from competing at the Tokyo Olympic Games, where he finished 49th in the road race and ninth in the time trial, while representing Belgium.

“Wet, windy and lots of sand,” Evenepoel said of a short training ride on Monday. “Beautiful roads and cycle paths. Better than in Belgium. Thumbs up."

Remco Evenepoel to 'learn to ride in echelons' at Tour of Denmark

'We have a lot of experienced guys on the team who can teach me' says Deceuninck-QuickStep rider

www.cyclingnews.com

 

[Andre]

Good! It's a great thing to gain experience.

 

[Tinnekeisabella]

Lombardia is closer to his hometown than where the stages of the Tour of Denmark are situated. Neither are close to where he lives. But I guess that's Lefevere being Lefevere.

Lefevere‘ s world map is not like ours

 

[Valanga]

“Wet, windy and lots of sand,” Evenepoel said of a short training ride on Monday. “Beautiful roads and cycle paths. Better than in Belgium. Thumbs up."

Now that's not really that hard, when the typical Belgian bike lane looks like this:

But yes, cycling infrastructure in Denmark is top notch ;-)

Anyway, it sounds like they actually want to teach him how to ride in the peloton now. Good idea.

 

[Tinnekeisabella]

Ok Denmark is windy, but how big is the chance that the wind is not good for echelons?

In any case, the rest of the peloton in Denmark is warned: echellon time!

 

[Panda Claws]

I wonder if, without covid, there would have been attempts to make him race in the US. There are stage races there with several climbs even at this point in the year if I am not mistaken.

 

[Big Doopie]

"After all I've been through, winning the European Championships in Trentino would mean a lot," Evenepoel said in a press release.

it's this sh!t he has to refrain from. i can totally see how this can grate on...well, even a fan.

I get the "after all I have been through", but why is the only appropriate positive outcome that he win? it is the arrogance of assuming that anything less than victory is a disappointment. as if no one else could legitimately win.

i reeeeeeeeeally want him to succeed, but this sh!t has got to stop.

just shut up and win. and if you don't, then hope to feel improvement. but fer godssakes, shut up.

 

[Red Rick]

"After all I've been through, winning the European Championships in Trentino would mean a lot," Evenepoel said in a press release.

it's this sh!t he has to refrain from. i can totally see how this can grate on...well, even a fan.

I get the "after all I have been through", but why is the only appropriate positive outcome that he win? it is the arrogance of assuming that anything less than victory is a disappointment. as if no one else could legitimately win.

i reeeeeeeeeally want him to succeed, but this sh!t has got to stop.

just shut up and win. and if you don't, then hope to feel improvement. but fer godssakes, shut up.

The phrasing is just weird. If he'd just said something like "It's been tough but I'm aiming for the win here" then there's nothing that sounds really wrong.

 

[Salvarani]

He probably could have worded himself better, but that is just age and him having to mature a bit.

"After all I have been through" is a little bit of a cringe thing to say though.

 

[red_flanders]

"After all I've been through, winning the European Championships in Trentino would mean a lot," Evenepoel said in a press release.

it's this sh!t he has to refrain from. i can totally see how this can grate on...well, even a fan.

I get the "after all I have been through", but why is the only appropriate positive outcome that he win? it is the arrogance of assuming that anything less than victory is a disappointment. as if no one else could legitimately win.

i reeeeeeeeeally want him to succeed, but this sh!t has got to stop.

just shut up and win. and if you don't, then hope to feel improvement. but fer godssakes, shut up.

Interesting reaction, for me very different. What he said sounds totally normal to me. He should expect to win. He has been through a lot. I don't think winning is the only positive outcome in his mind, but quite simply, he's a rider who expects to win. One the the main reasons I like him.

Expecting to win is a key component to being a champion. I hope he never changes.

 

[Netserk]

Interesting reaction, for me very different. What he said sounds totally normal to me. He should expect to win. He has been through a lot. I don't think winning is the only positive outcome in his mind, but quite simply, he's a rider who expects to win. One the the main reasons I like him.

Expecting to win is a key component to being a champion. I hope he never changes.

Agreed, I too find nothing wrong with that.

That he should expect himself to win (every time), doesn't mean however that anyone else should expect (as in a probabilistic projection) him to win. I'm sure he expected to win the Giro last year, but that doesn't mean that he was a likely winner; it just means that he is very ambitious.

 

[Baldinger]

Evenepoel doesn't really say anything about expecting to win in Trentino, does he? But IF he takes the victory, it would mean a lot to him. That's how I read the statement.

 

[Tinnekeisabella]

I think it would be a good thing if Remco just takes some time from the press. He is not winningcurrently, no reason to talk to them.

Concentrate on just racing, having fun and building up for next year….

 

[hayneplane]

I think it would be a good thing if Remco just takes some time from the press. He is not winningcurrently, no reason to talk to them.

Concentrate on just racing, having fun and building up for next year….

Agreed. There wasn’t anything wildly wrong in his comment about the Euro champs but staying quiet and just getting out on the bike building form and endurance base would be better than giving people the chance to dissect every sentence he utters in public.

 

[Andre]

nothing wrong with the statement...some people are too sensitive to phrases

 

[gerundium]

Mads Pedersen's Tour de France suffering pays off with Denmark win

'I was fighting through that to get another level for the rest of the season, and I think today shows it was worth it' says Trek-Segafredo rider

www.cyclingnews.com

“This is never an easy finish – uphill and a headwind – but I believed I could win,” said Pedersen. “It was also a hard race today, and the last laps were really hard with Remco (Evenepoel) doing a crazy tempo for almost two and a half laps alone, pulling really really hard. It was just a hard day, and I know after a hard day like this, I can still do a good sprint.”

doing some nice training in Denmark? what's this about?

 

[Dekker_Tifosi]

the way I see it, and this is also what happened to early career Gesink (but on a lower level ofcourse), is that the injury set Evenepoel back to pre 2019 levels.
He is simply worse now than in his neo pro year.

When Gesink got injured in 2010, it took him until 2015 to really get back at the level he had in 2010... (in GT's at least)
I think it's simply wise to lower expectations for Evenepoel for now

 

[Red Rick]

the way I see it, and this is also what happened to early career Gesink (but on a lower level ofcourse), is that the injury set Evenepoel back to pre 2019 levels.
He is simply worse now than in his neo pro year.

When Gesink got injured in 2010, it took him until 2015 to really get back at the level he had in 2010... (in GT's at least)
I think it's simply wise to lower expectations for Evenepoel for now

With Gesink there's so many crashes it's impossible to know which crash did what. He also had the heart surgery right?

Not withstanding bad fortunes, Gesink is also a clear early bloomer in my opinion. Especially in tha time period. His overall results were clearly better even in 2009 than like 2015.

 

[sir fly]

As I've already commented on Roglič's example, the lack of youth experience sometimes costs him in regard to bike handling.
Everything else - pretty exceptional. Including the tactical nous.

 

[Boes]

Classic Evenepoel. Almost fell in a decent after missing a bend... but end up solo-ing the stage, taking the GC en lapping the peleton.

That's exactly why there are 252 pages in this thread. You never really know what you're gonna get.

 

[Eddy Evenepoel]

I think it would be a good thing if Remco just takes some time from the press. He is not winning currently, no reason to talk to them.

Can he now speak to the press again?