"He is very happy with Quick Step" - Louis Vervaeke hopes Remco Evenepoel will push back INEOS advances

Soudal - Quick-Step have changed tact over the last 12 months or so. No longer a team based around hunting stages and sprints, they now hope to build a GC team around Remco Evenepoel. The only problem is, other teams are also interested in the Belgian, most notably INEOS Grenadiers

“It's not for me to talk about this, but it's not easy for him to hear these stories. He is very happy with Soudal - Quick-Step and really wants to build a team around him that is ready to win Grand Tours," says Evenepoel's teammate Louis Vervaeke in conversation with RTBF. "I would like to help him make history for Belgium and win the Tour de France."

The rumours are that Soudal - Quick-Step could be bringing in Mikel Landa among others to reinforce the climbing capabilities of the team. "We need a rider like Mikel Landa next to Remco, but I also have confidence in our current team," says Vervaeke. "We have several good climbers that are not well known, but have potential. However, we need two top level climbers."

"Jumbo and UAE have riders like Sepp Kuss and Adam Yates, Remco also needs men like that for the last kilometres," he concludes. "When he sets a goal, he immediately moves on to the next one. Four or five days after his retirement in the Giro, he was already talking about the Vuelta. He is very ambitious and mentally strong. Busy? He imposes it on himself. He is world champion, won the Vuelta... We will also go to win in August."