My two cents one some stuff that is talked about:
- Giro comeback : way too soon, and he was not as complete a rider he is now. Sure he'll always be a bit more cautious on the downhill, and he won't ever have Pogacar bike handling, but he's improved considerably since his early days. He has become solid enough. Ofcourse when you're up against pogacar solid enough might not cut it
- Weight: it's normal for a sportman to look for his optimal weight. And preferably find it as fast as possible. The reason people are debating it so much, is in part because Remco and his team themselves seem unsure, and haven't fully found what works best. It ain't like Ullrich, where he was just overweight after the winter. With remco it's more like in what weight does he perform best.
- TDF: i can see why people want to see a marauder style remco, ride the tdf the way he would certain one day races. And there is a certain appeal to it. But i don't think this is the year for it. This year i'd rather see him be quite as a mouse till the TT, then go back to being quite as a mouse till the first real mountain stage. I know there is a short wall climb somewhere before that, but he should be able to minimise damage there.
- Stage hunting: Personally, if a rider is of a certain caliber, i don't care about stage hunting. For most riders a stage win is a big deal, but if you're a page 1 rider, than stage wins just don't matter imo. For a rider like Evenepoel i care about GC, and one day race wins. For instance , if all goes well, remco will probably win (in my subjective opinion) his second important race of the season today. After Brabantse Pijl, national TT. Now i know he won TT's in Romandie and the Dauphiné, and that the opponents were arguable greater. But most of the time I just don't care about stage wins in a stage race when you're a guy like evenepoel. It's a nice little bonus but it don't matter that much. By the end of this season i'll remember his Brabantse Pijl win and hopefully his National TT win, i'll probably 'forget' about his TT wins in the stage races. So when people say Remco should stage hunt in the TdF, for me that is like the option you go to when all else has failed. When you've been found wanting for top 5 GC. Some stage wins do matter. But they are rare. Like first ever GT stage win, or WVA sienna win in the Giro this year. They matter cause of context. But a stage win by itself for a rider like Evenepoel is just a little bonus. they don't change the needle for me.