Patrick Lefevere believes the 2025 Tour de France, which
begins in just three days, could prove pivotal for
Remco Evenepoel’s future,
both with Soudal – Quick-Step and more broadly in his career.
Evenepoel has always maintained he is happy with the team,
but this Tour carries particular weight. Questions about his long-term
commitment have never truly gone away, driven largely by the squad’s lack of
depth compared to his chief rivals.
The contrast is huge. At UAE Team Emirates - XRG, Tadej
Pogacar is supported by a formidable lineup featuring Adam Yates, Joao Almeida,
Pavel Sivakov, and Tim Wellens. Meanwhile, Jonas Vingegaard’s Visma | Lease a
Bike squad boasts Simon Yates, Matteo Jorgenson, Sepp Kuss, and even Wout van
Aert. By comparison, Soudal – Quick-Step simply don’t have that level of
firepower. Mikel Landa, who helped Evenepoel secure third place at last year’s
Tour, is sidelined this summer after crashing at the Giro.
That lack of depth was already visible at the Critérium du
Dauphiné, where Evenepoel was frequently left alone on the climbs, with no
teammates around him. Now more than ever, Quick-Step need to prove they can
truly support their leader on cycling’s biggest stage.
Speaking to Daniel Benson, Lefevere was candid about the
constant speculation surrounding Evenepoel’s future, “It's become a very boring
question. This story keeps coming back, and every time, I hope it doesn't
distract the team from the Tour de France.”
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“I'm no longer the boss, so it's up to Jurgen. We don't talk about it much,
although he has asked me for advice about riders and their future. Ultimately,
he does what he wants.”
Lefevere also acknowledged the financial gulf that makes
competing with the sport’s giants so challenging: “It's difficult to compete
against teams with a budget of fifty million euros, but I think Jurgen is doing
a good job. They discuss Red Bull and INEOS and now report that Lidl-Trek has
made an offer. I'm not sure if that's true, but I do know it's been ongoing for
a long time. It hasn't stopped since he won his first world title.”
Ultimately, Lefevere believes much will depend on how
Evenepoel feels after this Tour.
“If he comes out of the Tour happy, I see no reason to look
further. He knows the people, even though a fresh environment creates new
ambitions. I see big teams that are not doing better than us, even though they
have more money. If someone wants Remco for 2026, they'll have to pay, but the
sponsors won't be happy.”
Beyond the long-term questions, Lefevere admitted he is
especially nervous about the opening days of this year’s race. Having stepped
down from leading Soudal – Quick-Step at the end of 2024 after more than two
decades in charge, he remains deeply invested in Evenepoel’s trajectory.
“I hope that he can stay on his bike because the opening
stages will be very nervous and tricky,” Lefevere said. “Everyone wants to win
in Lille on stage 1 because they know that if they win, then they’ll have the
yellow jersey. We’ll see GC riders fighting not to lose time and sprinters’
teams trying to do lead-outs. I’m afraid that it will be very chaotic. We hope
to win the first stage with Tim Merlier and take yellow, and then if Remco can
win the first TT, he can also take over the jersey.”
To win of top 3, he needs support. A d according to the roster, they are taking a sprinter and lead out man. So, come time to climb, Remco is down 2 team members for support. To win a race like the TDF you need skill, luck (illness and falls), directions from the team and more than anything a team built to be your support on flat and then climbs. Not be out manned before you even see a climb