“He’ll never win against Tadej and Jonas” – Bruyneel unleashes brutal assessment of Remco Evenepoel’s Tour de France chances

Everyone now knows what had been one of cycling’s worst-kept secrets: Remco Evenepoel will leave Soudal – Quick-Step at the end of the 2025 season to join Red Bull – BORA – hansgrohe in 2026. The double Olympic champion’s transfer has been years in the making, with rumours swirling for most of this season before finally being confirmed earlier this month. His departure marks a seismic shift for both teams, and the wider WorldTour, and it has sparked plenty of reaction from within the sport. And perhaps none more explosive than a recent assessment by one of the sport’s most controversial figures. Johan Bruyneel spoke openly on On The Move+ about what the move means for Evenepoel’s career, and it is safe to say he had his doubts.

"It was no secret that Remco wanted to leave," Bruyneel said. "I definitely think it's a good move for him. This is the fresh start and environment he needed. If he wanted to take things a step further, he had to change teams." The reasoning is clear: Evenepoel leaves in search of a stronger, more specialised support system. While Quick-Step built much of its recent identity around him, it was still a team rooted in classics racing, not in assembling full Grand Tour climbing trains.

"Be careful, Soudal Quick-Step fulfilled 95 percent of his wishes. But the initiative always had to come from him. That will be the big difference with Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe. They have the infrastructure, manpower, and money to think for him."

Bruyneel did not shy away from making a bold prediction about Evenepoel’s limits at the Tour de France. "No matter which team Remco rides for, he'll never win the Tour against Tadej and Jonas. It's that simple. You really should disregard the Tour." He pointed to the current landscape of men’s stage racing, where Tadej Pogacar and Jonas Vingegaard have dominated the general classification in recent years. "It might be different if Pogacar doesn't start, but Remco has never come close to Vingegaard either. Not even last year, when Jonas wasn't 100 percent."

The Belgian was also realistic about the near future. "Look, Pogacar and Vingegaard aren't going anywhere in the next few years. They'll just stay with UAE Team Emirates and Visma-Lease a Bike, respectively."

In Bruyneel’s view, Evenepoel is part of the next tier of elite riders, a group just behind the two standout champions but still capable of winning almost everything else. "After those two, you have a group of riders, and Evenepoel is part of that group. We can't forget that he finished third in last year's Tour, has already won the Vuelta, is a multiple Olympic and world champion... He was the only rider of that caliber available."

From BORA’s perspective, signing Evenepoel is as much about adding star power as it is about performance. He joins a lineup that already features Primoz Roglic, Jai Hindley, and new GC superstar Florian Lipowtiz. Bruyneel sees no issue with having multiple contenders. "If Tadej and Jonas are at the start, they're not favorites anyway. So they don't have to carry the race, and you can have two leaders without any problem. It just remains to be seen who's the best."

Evenepoel’s decision also reflects the shift in BORA’s ambition since the Red Bull partnership began. The German team now has both the financial resources and the infrastructure to support multiple GC projects simultaneously. His move is set against the backdrop of a broader shake-up: Mattia Cattaneo, sports director Klaas Lodewyck, and other Soudal staff will follow him, while former Belgian national coach Sven Vanthourenhout will take on a focused role guiding Evenepoel, with Zak Dempster as sporting manager.