"Remco's heart still lies with Quick-Step" - World champion's father confirms there's no longer bad blood after 2026 departure
Cycling
The departure of Remco Evenepoel from Soudal - Quick-Step to Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe after seven years of collaboration have left some bitter emotions, but it was perhaps to the best for both parties. Evenepoel finally gets the deserved level of support at the German team backed by Austrian beverage giant, and his former team can better reallocate their slightly more limited resources.
And even though the parting was a little more explosive, Remco keeps his former team in high esteem, his father Patrick Evenepoel reveals in an interview for Humo: "Remco's heart still lies with Quick-Step," he insists.
What does that mean for the future? Could be nothing. Could also mean that Evenepoel, after few years pass and perhaps star fades a little, he will consider a return to the Belgian formation before any other...
A bond still exists
And father Evenepoel continues to outline that there's no longer any bad blood between Evenepoel and Soudal - Quick-Step. In a sense, it was simply a turn of events which was necessary for the still-young rider to fully realize his potential.
"It is no coincidence that they were the first to congratulate him in the Tour. But sometimes you need a different environment to improve," Evenepoel senior maintains that a switch was necessary.
In his statement, however, Patrick Evenepoel maintains a careful stance on what in particular is better about Remco's new team. "I am not saying that work is being done more professionally at Red Bull, it is just different. In any case: we cannot say that it hasn't helped," he states.
New coach, new magic
A significant change occurred in May, when Tim Heemskerk joined Evenepoel's team as the new trainer. A key factor in the current success story, culminating in second place at the Tour de France.
"There was an immediate connection between Tim and Remco," said Patrick. "After Liège-Bastogne-Liège, we sat down with the team – Zak Dempster, Klaas Lodewyck, Tim, Remco, and I. Their message was clear: we are stopping now and starting over in this way. Remco just had to answer yes or no. He was immediately on board with the idea."
Read also
Heemskerk joined Red Bull after years of work at Visma | Lease a Bike. This also raised the question of whether he brought certain knowledge from his previous work environment with him. Evenepoel senior laughs about it.
"If Guardiola becomes manager of Anderlecht tomorrow, he will also bring the secrets of Manchester City with him," he says, drawing an analogy with the football team Remco used to play for in youth categories before he made the switch to road cycling.
Ondrej ZhasilCycling Journalist
Ondřej Zhasil is a cycling journalist at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2023. He is based in Ostrava, the third-largest city in the Czech Republic, and covers professional cycling across the main UCI competitions, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España. A key focus of his work is startlist analysis and pre-race coverage, where he examines team selections, rider line-ups, and tactical scenarios ahead of major events.
Alongside WorldTour coverage, Ondřej has developed specific expertise in junior cycling and in racing across East Asia, including competitions in China and Japan. He also maintains a broad working knowledge of other disciplines and levels, including cyclocross, while continuing to expand his understanding of mountain bike racing.
Ondřej holds a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and Physics, which supports his analytical, data-driven approach to performance and race analysis. In his reporting, he regularly uses ProCyclingStats for results, statistics, and historical context. He places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles promptly when new, verified information becomes available.
claps 0visitors 0
Just in
Popular news
Latest comments
- 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
Loading
Write a comment