"It's only a matter of time before Remco Evenepoel can call himself the best time trial rider ever" - Guy Van Den Langenbergh
Cycling
Remco Evenepoel is without a single doubt the most successful time trialist in the current peloton but is he the best in history? That is a discussion that hasn't been brought up as much as Tadej Pogacar's credentials in the road races, but one worth a thought according to a Belgian pundit who sees him close or matching Fabian Cancellara already.
"It's only a matter of time before Remco Evenepoel can call himself the best time trial rider ever. The fact that he was able to win this European Championship, despite a busy schedule and a long flight, proves the difference compared to other specialists like Filippo Ganna and Joshua Tarling," Guy Van Den Langenbergh wrote for Het Nieuwsblad.
The 25-year old is the reigning Olympic time-trial champion, now a three-time consecutive winner of the rainbow jersey, and a two-time winner of the European title. Furthermore he has won time-trials in all Grand Tours and at this point in his career he is virtually unbeatable. When adding the Grand Tour, monument and stage-race victories Evenepoel has, his palmarès is already one of the best in modern history without a doubt.
But purely in a time-trial perspective, he is perhaps matched by Fabian Cancellara who is the winner of four world titles, two Olympic titles and much more - although no European titles as they only began being attributed in 2016. "The only advantage Cancellara still has is the two Olympic titles he collected in this discipline, compared to one for Evenepoel. Our compatriot is already eager to level the playing field in Los Angeles [Olympic Games] in three years."
Unlike Pogacar, it can't be argued that Evenepoel is 'better than Merckx'
Evenepoel could on paper become, without a shadow of a doubt, the best time-trialist in history if he continues to perform the way he is currently doing, and that is not an unreasonable scenario. His time-trial ambitions don't come in the way of his Grand Tour goals, and with only 25 years of age he still has space to conquer many more titles.
"This observation isn't chauvinistic overconfidence; it's rather an almost mathematical certainty. Without physical setbacks, Remco Evenepoel will continue to dominate the individual time trials in the coming years," the Belgian pundit argues.
"Fortunately, we can't make the comparison with Eddy Merckx. The World Time Trial Championships only appeared on the calendar long after Merckx had put his bike away."
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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- I get the point totally. We live in the snowflake society where some riders forget they are getting paid to ride and get results. When they have a few issues they try to look outside of the real issue instead of themselves. It odd so many of the team are making no complaints and getting on with their job. If you do not like what you do find another job simples. Tough love as my mum would say.paultryan200207-11-2026
- many people advise him to grow slowly and rather do giro and/or vuelta instead of tdf. but i can totally understand that he is not satisfied with taking over once pogi declines, but instead beat him in his prime. so if he goes for tdf again, i‘m all for it. let‘s hope that pogi recovers soon!Ketterechts07-11-2026
- So gracious to offer something no-one would be prepared to pay for. The Giro is not the Tour and doesn’t command the same interest or attract the same “elite” (those willing to pay to be a part of something they consider has ego boosting potential). Roadside viewing will always largely remain free for everyone outside circuits. Introduction of a symbolic entrance to mountain climbs is worthy of exploration. Asking 1-2€ isn’t going to repulse real fans (most will spend 50-100€ on their outing that day all things included) but will prevent a portion of the total knobhead thrillseekers who will join in any large gathering as long as it’s free, just because they’re attracted to crowds, without which it it difficult for them to work up their anti-social behaviour.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- How is radio going to help when someone went over a cliff or bridge or off the roadside into a forest unnoticed and is laying there unconscious?Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- Yep, next we’ll be accusing F1 drivers of avoiding Le Mans.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- But on what is that opinion based? Are you holding him to a different standard than others? Are you saying he should do learn to like something he doesn’t Are you saying he hasn’t achieved enough Are you saying he pretends to be better than his results? It’s actually a really strange opinion to oust if you consider it objectively or rationally. Try applying it to others or yourself by asking if not EVERYONE should then be doing more? Nobody in athletics or swimming gets criticism for not expanding their repertoire when a rival or someone else does. In fact, most who move to another event get accused of running from their rival. Opinions are boring, the reasons behind them are what count.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- for a medical chief to throw things like is just bad. There are already radios which were banned for spectacle. allow radios. Gps trackers are not a complete solutionabstractengineer07-11-2026
- Yeah man...PogiSloFans07-11-2026
- any rider less than 25 whether they are really ready for the position of leadership of GT is probably not the case. I think Pogi himself suffered when he was defeated by Jonas in the TDF twice. But that would be the team's job to ensure support so that they can bounce back. It requires a team and time to get back up and win after getting knocked down.abstractengineer07-11-2026
- I'm very glad he got the big late Quickstep Vuelta win and I hope he has a few left for Euskaltel-Euskadi.flyer07-11-2026
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