The world class winners in the current peloton are overwhelmingly dominating the stage-races, but amongst each other the level is relatively balanced. Remco Evenepoel is gathering the confidence to battle Tadej Pogacar and Jonas Vingegaard, having achieved one more big goal in his career.
"Those guys [Pogacar and Vingegaard] are really crazy good. But I think this year as a Vuelta winner and a world champion I can take a lot of confidence. I have to believe in myself, in my capacities. I think that I'm coming to a level where I will probably be able to compete with them," the World Champion said in an interview with The Cycling Show on Eurosport. "That's also where I want to go and where my ambitions are, to try to win races over them."
Evenepoel soared to another Liège-Bastogne-Liège win this Sunday as he beat the competition by a wide margin after Tadej Pogacar was forced out of the race. He hasn't battled with the Slovenian or the Tour de France champion yet this year, as he prepares for the Giro d'Italia and has taken a different path during the spring. He won the UAE Tour and finished second to Primoz Roglic at the mountainous Volta a Catalunya.
However in the future the Tour de France, where the former duo finished first and second on the last two editions, is also on his mind. "It would be a big dream and a big motivation for me to try and step up again and try to fight against them for race victories," he admits. "I'm always in the middle of everything - all the spotlight is on me - but I don't win the races without my team-mates."
"For example the Vuelta [A Espana], I'm in the red jersey, all the attention goes to me. But I only ride some days, one kilometer in the wind - maybe not even that. I learned that I can be really relaxed and focused at the same time - I was not like that before my crash," he explains.
"I was focused but it all had to go for the bike, bike, bike and nothing else could enter the way. Now it's completely different, we manage perfectly the relaxed moments and the stress moments. I really learned how you go through that month to perform at the highest level every day," Evenepoel concluded.
Rúben SilvaEditor-in-Chief
A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
Beyond editorial work, he has been closely involved in the expansion and coordination of CyclingUpToDate’s wider network, helping establish and support sister platforms across multiple languages. This includes ongoing collaboration with CiclismoAlDia (Spanish), CiclismoAtual (Portuguese), WielrennenUpToDate (Dutch), and RadsportAktuell (German), contributing to a shared editorial vision and consistent international coverage.
He also helps oversee editorial governance across the network, setting standards for accuracy and consistency and coordinating updates or corrections when needed.
Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
Within 18 months of launch, he helped grow CyclingUpToDate’s English-language platform into one of the most-read cycling news websites, built entirely from the ground up. As both a professional journalist and lifelong cycling enthusiast, his focus remains on delivering accurate, timely, and well-contextualized coverage.
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- for what?frieders311-11-2026
- Blah blah blah!frieders311-11-2026
- Where Merckx just rode every single race he could and won all the time, Hinault won less often (percentage wise) because he was more judicious in what he raced. His palmares are nuts. He had amazing rivals, one to start his career and another to end it in the grand tours. His classics were solid. What sets him apart from Merckx and Pogačar are that he basically dabbled in the classics while the other two love(d) them. I used to compare Pogačar to Hinault for his grand tour record and occasional classics win, until I realized that the comparison was wrong. Pogačar loves the classics - ah, the memory of his reaction to finishing fourth in a 2 person sprint in Flanders in ‘22: utter domination in any one day race since then, even when he doesn’t win. Hinault lived for the grand tours and I don’t think anyone else will ever reach his record. 10 wins in 13 attempts? Good lord. An amazing rider. Wish there was more footage to watch.RidesHills11-11-2026
- I had no idea about that either.
santiagobenites10-11-2026 - great analysis thanks! appreciate you posting this. I didn't realize CX had a different standard for deviation. this is even more egregious it seems.mij10-11-2026
- As he isn't currently with Red Bull, I guess if he want to race for one more year he needs to find a team. He's 37 so this will be his last year I would guess, unless he wants to race for almost nothing like Froome did.awp10-11-2026
- I think some are making much ado about nothing. Even though Jonas is getting older, before his crash in the Tour, he looked like a solid 2nd all the way home. No one can really climb with Tadej until this year, Eric Mas showed himself which I think was a one off year for him and Paul Seixas has been able to be pretty close to him. Whatever stage race Jonas enters as long as Tadej is not there he is a favorite to win.awp10-11-2026
- Giro or not Giro, he won't win the Tour!MajorPayne10-11-2026
- Very true.awp10-11-2026
- Ciccone had a very strong end of season. Consistently attacking and livening up races. Hope he makes that last leap in progress and starts notching some significant wins. Great rider to watch.Occam10-11-2026
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