"He could win" - Remco Evenepoel's new Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe teammate laments Tour of Flanders absence

Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe have continued signing many big names into the 2026 season with the intent of building the new 'super team'. Remco Evenepoel is the headliner, but he is not teaming up with Gianni Vermeersch who is coming in to lead in the cobbled classics. However, the two compatriots aren't set to team up often in their debut season with the team.

"I personally noticed that I was open to trying something new again. I'm no longer the youngest; maybe even older. I noticed that it's mentally good to gain another experience," Vermeersch admitted in words to Wielerflits. "Everything is new here. I'm super motivated to discover that. I think it's still a good step at this stage of my career."

Vermeersch grew up in cyclocross and moved onto the road, at the same time and in the same way as Mathieu van der Poel. Throughout his whole pro career, the two have been heavily linked up together, with Vermeersch becoming the Dutchman's right-hand man in the cobbled classics. He has fulfilled his role to perfection, aiding van der Poel to several monument wins - and more - and now he will test himself as a leader of a World Tour team.

"Let me just say it's a great step from a sporting perspective. I think all those cobbled classics suit me. I've finished in the top 10 in almost every one. I can hold my own and get my chances here." In 2025 the German team signed many riders who could perform in the cobbles, but rarely was there a sight of one, with Laurence Pithie the only rider to highlight. Jan Tratnik did not race them, neither did Maxim van Gils; Oier Lazkano did not perform and was then suspended; the van Dijke twins were visible in Roubaix but not much elsewhere. The team has now conducted another large set of signings and Vermeersch may have a key role.

The 33-year old will be racing the Opening Weekend, Strade Bianche and most of the main cobbled classics block. This means he will not team up with Remco Evenepoel (the two have had issues in the past, but that is now behind them, he has said), who is focusing on the Spanish stage-races, Ardennes and Tour de France. A Tour of Flanders debut looked quite likely before the announcement of his schedule, however it will not happen.

"Do I think it's a shame that Evenepoel isn't riding the Tour of Flanders? Yes, because then he could win," Vermeersch argued. "Now it's an extra opportunity for me." Evenepoel will then race the Tour Auvergne - Rhône Alps and the Tour de France. Vermeersch will not, and aknowledges that a rider of his kind would not have much use as a domestique for the overall classification men.

"I don't think I can do much for Remco and Florian uphill. At Alpecin-Deceuninck, we had a completely different objective, and I could be valuable. There, it was mainly about trying to win stages with Mathieu," he argues. "Especially last year, I could make a difference in those punchy stages. But you shouldn't ask me to start setting the pace on a climb. Those are the domestiques they need". Without much expertize as a leadout of positioning expert, there isn't truly a position that would fit the Belgian in the lineup.

"Besides that, you have Jordi or another sprinter who might be able to win an intermediate stage," he adds. "But otherwise, everything will depend on Remco and Florian".