"Tadej Pogacar's arsenal of strengths can't be endless, can it?" - Remco Evenepoel must keep hope of rival's tiredness at Tour de France goes on says Serge Pauwels

How Remco Evenepoel would fare on his Tour de France debut was a topic of much discussion ahead of the 2024 edition. As the race reaches its first rest day, the Belgian has so far been almost faultless and sits 2nd overall, just 33 seconds off the Maillot Jaune.

On Sunday's thrilling gravel stage 9 around Troyes, Evenepoel was an attacking protagonist, attempting to put himself on the front foot in the GC fight. Ultimately, he wasn't able to gain any time on rivals such as Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard or Primoz Roglic, but Belgian cycling icon, Sven Nys was very happy with what he saw in regards to his compatriot's performance on the mini-Strade Bianche type stage.

"Apart from Mikel Landa, everyone around him was dropped very quickly," Nys notes in his analysis for Sporza however, highlighting the fragility of the Soudal - Quick-Step team on the biggest test of the Tour de France so far. "Maybe that's why he thought: I'm here alone, so I'll try to isolate the others too. But that game didn't happen."

Six time Tour de France participant Serge Pauwels joined Nys to analyse things for Sporza, and the former Giro d'Italia stage too has a growing sense of optimism in regards to his compatriot. "We can be happy with Remco's temperament," Pauwels explains. "He still races with his gut feeling. However, he will also have to save his strength if he wants to reach the podium in Nice."

"I currently estimate him among the top three riders in this Tour, but then in place 2 or 3, because Pogacar stands out," concludes the 40-year-old former Team Sky rider. "The question is how those three riders will evolve during this Tour. Pogacar already has the Giro in his legs, his arsenal of strengths can't be endless, can it? That's what Evenepoel and Vingegaard must hope for. You can expect that the form of the last two is improving after that crash in the Itzulia Basque Country. If that all happens effectively, we will have a great fight."