Remco Evenepoel thrived in the cobbles of Flanders - But a Paris-Roubaix debut will not happen in 2026

Remco Evenepoel has kept his Tour of Flanders debut a secret. Only the coming days will confirm if the same isn't done for Paris-Roubaix, however reputable sources in Belgium report that this is not the case, and that the decision has already been made for the Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe rider to not take part in the 'Hell of the North'.

This utimately does not come as a surprise, taking into consideration how Flanders was in Evenepoel's schedule from the start and was worked into a calendar that included an altitude camp and the Volta a Catalunya over the month of March. With Flanders being a home race for Evenepoel and finishing only one week after Catalunya in which he was testing his form, Flanders was a rather logic choice. He finished third, benefiting from a race that didn't prove to be tactically complex, or dangerous when it comes to positioning. But in Paris-Roubaix, the dangers are unavoidable as the race and its cobbled sectors are flat; and the race is known to be road cycling's most risky event.

Evenepoel has the Ardennes classics in sight and Liège-Bastogne-Liège outlined where he may be Tadej Pogacar's only rival. In that logic, Paris-Roubaix would come in the way of his preparation towards the rest of his spring goals, whilst his attributes are nowhere near as fitting as in Flanders, where the race is decided on the climbs.

“Remco will not ride Paris-Roubaix. The plan is to keep his focus on the Ardennes Classics, as foreseen," Het Nieuwsblad wrote this Monday. "After his impressive debut on Sunday in the Tour, Roubaix is ​​something we can look at in the future, but for now, we are sticking to the current plan.” The German team should have several riders as options including Jordi Meeus, Laurence Pithie, Gianni Vermeersch and one of the spring's revelations Tim van Dijke.