"Let Remco do what he wants" - Tom Boonen points Evenepoel toward the Tour de France as he heads to altitude training in Teide

The 2026 season began with high expectations surrounding Remco Evenepoel, now riding in the new colors of Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe. However, after the first weeks of competition in Spain, his performance at the UAE Tour sparked intense debate in Belgium.

The young Belgian won the race’s time trial, confirming that he remains an absolute reference in the discipline, but struggled on the two decisive mountain stages, losing ground to his rivals on the summit finishes.

His inability to follow the best climbers in those key moments fueled criticism in the media and among Belgian fans, who questioned his physical condition at this early stage of the season.

Dirk De Wolf and Tom Boonen discussed the topic on Cycling Club Wattage, with Boonen attempting to slow down the rush to judgment.

“It’s still far too early to draw conclusions. We’re only in February. It used to be alarming when you won the Tour of the United Arab Emirates, with everything that was still to come.”

Remco Evenepoel will head to altitude training in Teide and, once that camp is completed, we may see a different Remco, with improved climbing capabilities. “Going uphill, Remco will improve a lot because of that climbing camp. But it’s clear that the others are also climbing better and better,” said Dirk De Wolf.

De Wolf added to his reasoning: “But on the climbs he will have to connect with Ayuso, Del Toro and Vingegaard to finish on the podium of a Grand Tour.”

In the Middle East, the strongest rider in the mountains was Isaac del Toro of UAE Team Emirates - XRG, with Italian Antonio Tiberi as his main rival. The race was decided on Saturday’s summit finish at Jebel Hafeet. “At the Tour of the United Arab Emirates, Remco rode on the home ground of the Emirates team. They made that stage race a main objective,” Boonen pointed out.

Although the Emirates team always wants to win its home race, Remco won the roughly 12 km ITT and shook UAE, recovering the time he had lost and moving into the race lead, leaving Isaac del Toro shaken. “Remco is still the best time trialist. No one can hold a candle to him”, said De Wolf.

Boonen does not want to place too much importance on Evenepoel’s difficult moments in the Middle East. “Let Remco do what he wants”, with De Wolf countering: “Remco will certainly win many other races. But we, the Belgian cycling fans, want him to climb with the very best.”

The race, which ended last Sunday, provided plenty of fuel for discussion. Although he was a notch below his usual level, Evenepoel has his goals clearly defined for 2026, with the Tour de France on the horizon.

In March, Remco will return to Spain for the Volta Ciclista a Catalunya and, in April, he has three one-day races on his calendar: Amstel Gold Race, La Flèche Wallonne and Liège-Bastogne-Liège.