Remco Evenepoel leads Quick-Step at Vuelta a Espana with strong support and Julian Alaphilippe to chase wins

Remco Evenepoel's ambitions of becoming a Grand Tour rider and Julian Alaphilippe's hunt for form will be the main plots to follow for Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl Team across this Vuelta a Espana, as the Belgian team announces strong support crew for the climbing ambitions.

Team DS Klaas Lodewyck has said: “Remco and Julian will be the leaders of the squad for this last Grand Tour of the season, one comprising many hard stages, from the Basque Country ones to those in the high mountains. For Remco, this will be a whole new adventure. He doesn’t start as a favourite for the general classification, and we will just take it day by day and see how things to".

After struggling through the Giro d'Italia last year after poor preparation, much has been discussed regarding his chances here, and a lot of preparation went into having him in good form and perfect weight to tackle a very mountainous race. He comes off the back of a win at the Clasica San Sebastian, and will be an outsider for the GC - albeit a favourite for many stages.

World champion Julian Alaphilippe will also be on the hunt for stage wins, although his good form is yet to show after a string of injuries and illnesses over the last few months. “Julian comes at the start after a tough season, but he has been working hard and will target some of the stages," Lodewyck said. "The two of them have a strong supporting cast, the entire team is ready and motivated, and we look forward to the next couple of weeks.”

The two will have the support of Ilan van Wilder, fifth at the Vuelta a Burgos where he's managed to evade the injuries that have spoilt his season, and Fausto Masnada who was runner up at Il Lombardia last season. Louis Vervaeke, Pieter Serry and Dries Devenyns will also be quality riders for the hilly and mountainous days, whilst Rémi Cavagna will be the main domestique on the flat stages for the Belgian.

Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl Team for Vuelta a Espana: Remco Evenepoel, Julian Alaphilippe, Rémi Cavagna, Dries Devenyns, Fausto Masnada, Pieter Serry, Ilan van Wilder and Louis Vervaeke.