Julian Alaphilippe bites back after being written off online: "All the bad energy and bad comments, I don’t care"

For the first time in his professional career, Julian Alaphilippe moved teams over the recent off-season, swapping Soudal - Quick-Step for the Tudor Pro Cycling Team. Although some believe the best days are gone for the 32-year-old Frenchman, 'LouLou' himself retains unwavering self-belief.

As mentioned though, there have been some dissenting voices online as Alaphilippe drops from World Tour level off the back a few seasons ruined by injuries and bad luck. “Of course they have, especially if you look at social media, but I don’t care,” the two-time world champion says of being written off online in comments to Rouleur. “I always realised that when you win you’re the best, and when you lose you are shit. All the bad energy and bad comments, I don’t care."

"It’s maybe easy to say and hard to do, but for me I know what is important in life: I will never give importance to this because I know how hard it is to fight on the bike, how hard it is to be on your best level. A few comments on the internet will not change this," Alaphilippe continues. "I was always super humble, so even when I was on my best level, or like they say a part of the big six, I never considered myself among the best. I was just giving everything I could, you know.”

As always, Alaphilippe will be looking to entertain in 2025 with his typically attacking style. “The type of panache that I have, it’s how I am. It’s not a game. It’s not something I do for the cameras. I love to race like this," he says. "The biggest [change in cycling] is that there’s less space for instinct, for joy, for happiness. It’s more about calculations. Some guys you can see, and it makes me sad to see, when they finish the race they don’t care what happened or where they finished. They just look at how many watts they pushed, or they broke a five-minute [power] record. This for me is not cycling. Cycling is making the races.”

“I’m always optimistic and I am super motivated about this season,” the 32-year-old adds. “I felt it was the moment to be part of something that motivates me in a different way. I feel I have the space here to be a leader, the way I was.”

That's not to say that Alaphilippe doesn't admit things can still improve in the coming year. “I know I can be better, but I also know one time I'll be less strong. Crashes happen, sickness, personal problems, this and that, and then you’re not anymore in the best three or in the best six, but you don’t care because your fight is somewhere else,” he says. “And then you try to work hard day after day to come back to be the best of me and myself, not to be the best or in the top six. Of course, during this time it’s not easy because you’re a winner, you’re a fighter. I’m the guy who loves to attack, to make the race, to create something, and when you can’t anymore it’s not easy, but you have to keep believing like you can do it, that you can come back. It’s not easy, it will take time.”

"It’s hard to stay on top especially when you change teams, but I don’t think about this,” Alaphilippe concludes. “I feel like I am fresh, motivated, so excited to be happy. If I don’t perform, I will be disappointed about myself, but not about the team. I do my best, I will give my best, and I will have no regret, I tell you. I am sure about this.”