Patrick Lefevere admits the Tour de France is crucial for Evenepoel's future: "I do know it's been ongoing for a long time"

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.”