“He must be able to win Algarve for the third time” - Michel Wuyts on Remco Evenepoel’s early season form

Having won his first race of the season at the Figueira Champions Classic on Saturday, Remco Evenpoel’s next race is set to be the Volta ao Algarve later this week. Evenepoel has a good history at the Portuguese stage race, as he took the overall victory at both the 2020 and 2022 editions, which are his only two previous participations at the race.

In an interview on a podcast with Stijn Vlaeminck for Het Laatste Nieuws, Belgian journalist Michel Wuyts said “he must be able to win the Algarve for the third time”. In the battle for the overall victory, the Belgian National Champion will be up against other former winners such as Geraint Thomas and Daniel Felipe Martínez, as well as Tom Pidcock, Wout van Aert and Tao Geoghegan Hart.

On the same podcast, Evenepoel’s Belgian compatriot and former Paris-Roubaix winner Greg Van Avermaet said “the first two or three races are actually not fun. A lot of stress, choosing a position, fans, bad weather. It is important for Evenepoel that he is exposed to such conditions”.

Evenepoel will be aiming to replicate his form from the 2022 Volta ao Algarve, as in that season he went on to win his first Grand Tour at the Vuelta a España and the World Championships in Wollongong. With overall victory at the Tour de France as his main objective for this year, it will be important for the Soudal - Quick-Step rider to continue his strong start to the season.

This race also marks Evenepoel’s first stage race alongside his new teammate Mikel Landa, who has been brought in to support Evenepoel on climbing stages. The pair got off to a successful start at the Figueira Champions Classic, but this race will be the first real test for the Spanish super-domestique and it will be interesting to see how he helps Evenepoel throughout the race.