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

[Extinction]

He

Well if remco is doing upper body strength training he might want to re-consider the approach if his upper body is part of the reason he has a tough time. I mean some upper body training is probably necessary for the shoulder/back muscles and all that. But he should not be aiming to be the worlds strongest when it comes to upper body strenght. no idea what they do, professionals trainers should know what to do.

He doesn't need upper body strength training if he should reduce upper body mass.

 

[proffate]

. And, yes, it is possible to lose weight without starving. You just need to be extremely disciplined.

At some point as you drop weight, performance diminishes. I think that point is different for everyone. Or do you think Froome just wanted it more than anyone else in his generation?

The entire glp1 drug revolution has pretty conclusively proven, to me, that discipline is a myth. We are slaves to our hormones and we all have a different cocktail. And even if you have all the discipline in the world, where the body flips over to catabolism may be 6% or 2.5%.

 

[AmRacer]

I think were talking next to each other. and perhaps upset is the wrong word. I just saw several posts basically saying the same thing. Like i said, it is probably my own expectations for more elaboration. Instead of several people saying the same thing without more. Seems a bit redundant to me. But like i posted, maybe it's to simply emphasise it's a shared perspective.

I do feel for some it's more of a critique on remco the person than on remco the rider when they say he's just giving excuses again. That's fine, we all have mentality and personalities we like more. Just hard to tell at times without more info. I used to not be a fan of spartacus for example. he just seemed fake. In any case i would not like a peloton where everyone gives the same answer. Professional sports are entertainment at the end of the day after all.

This is a balanced post. Yes, 'upset' was the wrong word.

 

[VayaVayaVaya]

It's not about an excuse, he isn't looking for an excuse... He is just saying that he had a bad nights sleep, but that doesn't change the result or should be used as an excuse, he literally said that the day before already. It's just the same type of people always wanting to discredit him. We can all keep saying, oh AGR came after Roubaix which is why Pogacar got caught in 2025. That's all fine. But saying he woke up due to the heat but that it's no excuse is supposedly Remco looking for excuses...


It was said he was weighing 65kg again, so yeah it's that simple sometimes. I don't understand why he doesn't just try to keep being closer to his TDF weight throughout the season and make his body accustomed to it.

Per Google AI search engine, An explanation clarifies the "why" behind an event, often taking responsibility to provide context, whereas an excuse aims to deflect blame and avoid accountability. It seems like the debate is whether he's making excuses (i.e., deflecting blame and avoiding accountability) or searching for an explanation. Given the frequency of these events, and the wide variety in explanations he has provided, it comes across more like excuses. But having said that, I recently got unexpectedly destroyed by a friend on a big climb, pushing lower watts than I expected by 20, and while I didn't make excuses to him, just congratulated him on his fine legs, you better believe I was searching for every possible explanation for why I produced fewer watts than expected. It's natural.

I don't get upset with it. I just read a lot of comments saying remco giving excuses again. I don't get that.
If every rider would only say i was not good enough, interviews would become a waste of time.
I like that he brings colour to a peloton. I do find his interviews interesting whilst also thinking on what i believe myself about a situation. remco and his analysis aren't always flawless, or on the money but usually honest in his feelings in that moment.

I thought about it some more. maybe everyone just want to say they find his explanation just an excuse without elaborating further. So as to makle it clear, it justy ain't one person thinking that way. Like people don't feel it's enough someone else already posted it, they want to emphasise they feel the same way. I would elaborate my viewpoint, as else i would think i would not be adding anything. But maybe that's just me.

I guess it's cause were on a forum and not on youtube. i expect certain style of comments more on youtube. whilst i tend to expect longer thoughts on a forum. Maybe that's just my own expectations.

In any case, i do agree he does seem to have a problem with double digit gradients, and needs special prep to stomach those. Whilst he personally properly thinks he is in good shape (which he is) and should do good. On most terrain he would. But being in good shape does not seem to be enough for remco in double gradients. He'll need to work and prep for those walls to stomach them.

I agree with this. Remco's interviews are definitely more interesting, even I personally wouldn't choose to answer some questions the way he does. I'm a big fan of Roglic, but his stock answers are basically, "I just like to race," "You either have the legs or you don't," "My legs were great, eh," and "My legs were not so good, eh?" While amusing, it's less interesting than Remco's radical candor, even if that candor exposes a tendency toward excuses.

 

[Berniece]

Per Google AI search engine, An explanation clarifies the "why" behind an event, often taking responsibility to provide context, whereas an excuse aims to deflect blame and avoid accountability. It seems like the debate is whether he's making excuses (i.e., deflecting blame and avoiding accountability) or searching for an explanation. Given the frequency of these events, and the wide variety in explanations he has provided, it comes across more like excuses. But having said that, I recently got unexpectedly destroyed by a friend on a big climb, pushing lower watts than I expected by 20, and while I didn't make excuses to him, just congratulated him on his fine legs, you better believe I was searching for every possible explanation for why I produced fewer watts than expected. It's natural.

Which Evenepoel also did btw. He clearly said others were just better.

 

[AmRacer]

Which Evenepoel also did btw. He clearly said others were just better.

It's not like you say you are better when getting dropped, but there's always an excuse why.

 

[Karl Merckx]

ffs Remco's really brings out the psycho out of some people...

here are the exact quotes :

Yesterday after the stage :

"At the foot of the climb, I already had cramps. That hadn't happened to me very often before. Maybe it was because of yesterday's effort, which I hadn't quite recovered from yet. When I had to let go, I had a very bad kilometer, but after that, I managed to recover a little. It often happens to me at the beginning of the season, on climbs like this one, that I have a difficult moment. But anyway, I didn't feel good in my legs today. "
Was it due to the heat?
"I kept drinking regularly, so that can't be the reason. I think I hadn't recovered from yesterday's effort. I didn't sleep very well either, I woke up because of the heat. But in the end, I mustn't look for excuses. "

source: https://www.nieuwsblad.be/sport/wie...onden-na-inzinking-in-uae-tour/133738876.html

This morning before the race:

"I hadn't been feeling very good in my legs since the start of the day. Maybe I hadn't recovered properly from Tuesday's intense effort (the time trial) and I approached the climb with too much confidence.
Maybe I let myself be caught out by the first attackers. I rode a little too aggressively at the foot of the hill and a few kilometers further on, I paid the price."
There was talk in HNB of a bad night last night. Did you sleep well this time?
"The air conditioning in my room wasn't working. It was very hot, but the problem has now been solved. I slept better and was able to recover more effectively."

source: https://sporza.be/nl/2026/02/19/rem...ur-we-hoeven-niet-te-panikeren~1771487713136/

 

[Mayomaniac]

It seems his upper body mass kills him on a climb like yesterday. He needs to reduce that, which starts in November.

It's also easier to built the upper body, since he already has the lower boy:

 

[Cycling111]

@Pozzovivo
As I told you, Remco debuted the same year as Pogacar and is almost the same age. It's Seixas who's looking when they´ll retire them.
As soon as Pogacar declines, Remco's will surely follow, but anyway, there's a better climber than Remco coming up behind him.

 

[Berniece]

@Pozzovivo
As I told you, Remco debuted the same year as Pogacar and is almost the same age. It's Seixas who's looking when they´ll retire them.
As soon as Pogacar declines, Remco's will surely follow, but anyway, there's a better climber than Remco coming up behind him.

That’s not how it works. People don’t decline simultaneously, Remco could decline earlier or later

 

[KoopaCycling]

Yes but some back and shoulder strength can be useful in cycling, and just in general given his past injuries.
Maybe they can reduce upper body mass whilst maintaining enough shoulder/back strength.
No doubt red bull trainers will know somewhat what to do. I mean they already let off a balloon to perhaps try reducing some muscle mass next year if this year does not give the wanted results. Ofcourse some will debate that given that Remco for them isn't a real GT talent, that would be wrong route. Remco wants the GT battles though, more than than the monuments methinks.

 

[Cycling111]

That’s not how it works. People don’t decline simultaneously, Remco could decline earlier or later

It's true, it's possible Remco will decline before Pogacar.
Therefore, his logic i saying that Remco will win the tour due to Pogacar´s decline is a baseless assumption.

He's assumed that Pogacar will decline before Remco and that Remco will be in shape to win the Tour.
It can be the other way around, bur if it's Pogacar declines first , it's more likely that a new cyclist will be dominant at the Tour than someone who debuted in the same year.

 

[KoopaCycling]

That’s not how it works. People don’t decline simultaneously, Remco could decline earlier or later

It's also a matter of motivation and ambition (as long as the body holds up).
An ambitious cyclist should be able to stay in contention till age 34 or so these days with some tweaking.
I mean some explosiveness will fade, but that don't mean you can no longer compete.
Unless something happens, i would think Remco has another solid 7 seasons in him.

I wanted to use Boonen as an example of someone who faded earlier, as i think he was done for the last 2 years of his career but was unable to let go . But he retired at 36 says a search. So right in line with the 34 age mark.

 

[Red Rick]

The thing about Evenepoel and excuses is for multiple reasons. But it's primarily the combination of 1) talking a really big game outside of races about challenging Vingegaard and Pogacar 2), excessive outbursts when things don't go his way, from bumtouching any rider who won't take a turn to excessive gesturing when he gets dropped from a group, 3) Giving multiple different reasons for poor performance, often changing the reason and regularly contradicting himself.

I also dislike the nauseating amount of talking from people around him for why things will be better next year, often coming down to "we didn't figure out something extremely basic last year". They're not the only team that does something like that, Visma for example talking about "We believe in the Tour this year Pogacar was close to cracking last year" is sleep inducing as well.

 

[theyoungest]

Are you trolling me? Do you actually believe that coming in to the tour this year, Onley is a bigger favorite than Evenepoel?

Why do you think every bookmaker has Remco above Onley for Tour GC?

Because those odds are mainly based on name recognition and hype, not really on reality. Certainly this early in the season. I remember Froome had pretty decent odds for a long time when everyone who knew anything about cycling knew he wasn't going to feature at all.

Evenepoel just has this weakness in the high mountains that will be his kryptonite. I do concede that his ceiling is probably higher than Onley's... but his floor is also way lower.

 

[Armchair Cyclist]

Maybe if they put Remco in a room with AC he could teach Remco how to climb.

I'm willing to try: I'm promising nothing...

 

[Berniece]

Because those odds are mainly based on name recognition and hype, not really on reality. Certainly this early in the season. I remember Froome had pretty decent odds for a long time when everyone who knew anything about cycling knew he wasn't going to feature at all.

Evenepoel just has this weakness in the high mountains that will be his kryptonite. I do concede that his ceiling is probably higher than Onley's... but his floor is also way lower.

And will he be at his ceiling or floor during TDF? Is it his biggest goal or a side quest?

 

[KoopaCycling]

I will say this, i do believe Remco will get at least one real chance to win the Tour.
Unfortunately that don't mean he'll be able to take it. I had genuine believe in Jurgen Van Den Broeck for a legit shot at the Tour during 2011. Only for him to crash on stage 9.

 

[kingjr]

I will say this, i do believe Remco will get at least one real chance to win the Tour.
Unfortunately that don't mean he'll be able to take it. I had genuine believe in Jurgen Van Den Broeck for a legit shot at the Tour during 2011. Only for him to crash on stage 9.

I felt the same about Wiggins that year and thought the window may have closed for him, but he came back in 2012 and did it.

 

[YavorD]

Because those odds are mainly based on name recognition and hype, not really on reality. Certainly this early in the season. I remember Froome had pretty decent odds for a long time when everyone who knew anything about cycling knew he wasn't going to feature at all.

Evenepoel just has this weakness in the high mountains that will be his kryptonite. I do concede that his ceiling is probably higher than Onley's... but his floor is also way lower.

I don't think the high mountains are his weakness per se. He has shown he can be a great climber.
He is just incredibly inconsistent and unreliable in the mountains. He can very the best of the rest or very poor.

 

[mikks]

Then make sure you work on that physique from the start of the season. It's like they didn't use any of the knowledge they got from SOQ, and decided to start fresh. Why not reduce the amount of muscles this season already? Why waste another one by thinking that just increasing his threshold is enough for some races when the goal is to win TDF?

There are no solutions, only trade-offs. Maybe he loses some muscle mass and the end result is that he finishes one minute closer to Vingegaard, but still comes third. And on the other side of the trade-off, his results in the rest of the season are worse. Is it worth it?


If I had to advise Evenepoel, I would say the most logical path is this: continue doing and preparing as you have so far, because it is clearly working (just look at his wins and results). If you are looking for low-hanging fruit to improve, an obvious one is to try to avoid injuries and illnesses in order to have a good winter. Then, let’s find small nuances and details to tinker around with—but no big revolution in preparation.

 

[Wvv]

I wanted to use Boonen as an example of someone who faded earlier, as i think he was done for the last 2 years of his career but was unable to let go . But he retired at 36 says a search. So right in line with the 34 age mark.

The Boonen that almost won Paris-Roubaix and the World Championships in his last full season, that outsprinted the likes of young guns Démare and Matthews in two semiclassics that same year, also got another victory in his last few months, and rode a strong farewell Ronde and Roubaix however hampered by bad luck.

All of this shortly after crashing hard onto his head with a fractured skull and internal bleedings as a result.

That Boonen you mean? Weird example.

 

[Netserk]

That Boonen you mean? Weird example.

very weird given that all the hiccups made him worse in 13-15 than his last two years

 

[Wvv]

very weird given that all the hiccups made him worse in 13-15 than his last two years

Some physical setbacks, also bad luck in Roubaix, and of course the loss of an unborn first child that really struck him. Nevertheless he still got some ok victories, Kuurne 2014 was nice and during 2015 he was finding his sprint legs again untill that horror crash in Abu Dhabi happened.

 

[mikks]

Are you trolling me? Do you actually believe that coming in to the tour this year, Onley is a bigger favorite than Evenepoel?

Why do you think every bookmaker has Remco above Onley for Tour GC?

I just checked Oddschecker, and it gives Pogačar a 75% probability, Vingegaard a 17% probability, Evenepoel 7%, and Almeida 4.1%(though, only few bookmakers list Almeida), Lipowitz 5% and Onley 3,5% etc.

So yes, Evenepoel has better odds than Onley, but in the grand scheme of things, Pogačar is such an overwhelming favourite that it does not matter much who gets 7%, 5%, or 3% probabilities.