"Has to be careful, or else his legs blow up" - American pundit cautions Remco Evenepoel ahead of World Championships
CyclingFriday, 25 September 2026 at 01:00
Remco Evenepoel has just won the time trial World Championships and is one of the prime candidates to win the rainbow jersey next Sunday in Montréal. Chris Horner, a former pro, has analyzed the Belgian's performances.
"Yes, he’s in great form heading into the World Championships, where he’ll be the top favorite—I have no doubt about that," Horner argued on his Youtube channel.
Evenepoel struggled two weeks ago at the GP de Montréal on the very same roads, losing ground and time to Paul Seixas and Isaac del Toro that day. Nevertheless, the former Vuelta winner sees him as the biggest favourite.
"Back in my day, I knew I’d lose time in the time trials, but sometimes I’d win. When I was in really, really good form, I could time trial well too. For time trial specialists, it works the other way around: they always win the time trials, but they need to be in peak condition to win the road race."
Was the time trial a sign or an exception?
Horner questions then if Evenepoel will have his very best form, or whether the time trial win actually changes anything in the lead up to the road race.
"We have to see if that 'off day' from the GP Montréal might recur during Sunday's road race".
"Don't place too much emphasis on the individual time trial, but do pay attention to what riders like Paul Seixas and Isaac Del Toro achieved. They lost relatively little time to Evenepoel and showed they are in fantastic form."
Remco Evenepoel has recently become a time trial world champion for the fourth time
Kigali as a learning experience
The Olympic Champion will be lining out to the road race backed up by Wout Van Aert and a team that has several classics specialists present. Horner recalls last year's race where Evenepoel had a roller-coaster day.
"I can't make any guarantees about Remco Evenepoel's form. We've seen several times that the Belgian has to be careful, or else his legs blow up," he warns.
"Last year, he won the world time trial title in dominant fashion, yet he couldn't keep up with Tadej Pogačar—or the other riders ahead of him. And that was with over a hundred kilometers still to go."
Horner referred to Mont Kigali where Tadej Pogacar made the winning move. He later saw teammates Juan Ayuso and Isaac del Toro get dropped. Evenepoel was dropped and later suffered a mechanical.
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Yet, the Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe made a formidable comeback, and distance all of his direct rivals to still race into second place on the day. The answer on whether the time trial will have been a sign will only be understood on Sunday.
"We’ll see if his time-trial form was simply a sign that he’s a time trial specialist, or if he’s truly in top shape. Does he have the legs to go full gas for over 250 kilometers on the Montréal course? It features the same climb as the GP de Montréal, but the race is much longer than that 215-kilometer event."
Rúben SilvaEditor-in-Chief
A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
Beyond editorial work, he has been closely involved in the expansion and coordination of CyclingUpToDate’s wider network, helping establish and support sister platforms across multiple languages. This includes ongoing collaboration with CiclismoAlDia (Spanish), CiclismoAtual (Portuguese), WielrennenUpToDate (Dutch), and RadsportAktuell (German), contributing to a shared editorial vision and consistent international coverage.
He also helps oversee editorial governance across the network, setting standards for accuracy and consistency and coordinating updates or corrections when needed.
Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
Within 18 months of launch, he helped grow CyclingUpToDate’s English-language platform into one of the most-read cycling news websites, built entirely from the ground up. As both a professional journalist and lifelong cycling enthusiast, his focus remains on delivering accurate, timely, and well-contextualized coverage.
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- American pundit doper Horner ! LOL this clown should just stick to his YouTube crap !frieders325-09-2026
- This is hot off the press news...seriously ??? Now we're getting rider health updates from mother-in-laws LOL !frieders325-09-2026
- one of the many great things about WVA - he always does his work.mij25-09-2026
- Best chance for the Americans even though it's only a 2% chance at best.
Front24224-09-2026 - Please, why are we grouped with the USA (though I'm supporting Italy)
Rafionain-Glas24-09-2026 - If more riders were honest it would be a much more interesting sport. I appreciate Remco honesty it adds to everything about the sport and whether you agree or not when he talks its a least worth listening to. Every sport needs some that aren’t there to make friends they are there to win.jad2924-09-2026
- congrats, best TDS of the day, you have been programmed well! I thought your post was a clever joke at first but T living rent free in your head actually leads to road cycling + Remco=trump! hilarious! what about that lake renaming! or Kamala amazing leadership that we are missing out on!jad2924-09-2026
- He’s survived LBL, he’ll survive here. The rest depends on who tries what with or without who.Jumpyjohn24-09-2026
- There are quite a lot of rules about which jersey and when and how it looks but not sure about this particular facet. Seeing as you noticed, ever thought of applying to the UCI for commissaire work?Jumpyjohn24-09-2026
- Tadej seems to like everyone. You rarely hear him say anything negative, nor does anyone say much about him. One of the many things that makes him amazing.mij24-09-2026
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