“The air conditioning in my room wasn’t working” – Remco Evenepoel admits sleepless night may have played role in UAE Tour setback

Less than 24 hours after cracking badly on Jebel Mobrah and surrendering the UAE Tour lead, Remco Evenepoel offered a surprisingly calm explanation for his collapse.

“The air conditioning in my room wasn’t working,” he said before the start of Stage 4 in conversation with Sporza, as he searched for potential answers to his Queen Stage crack. “It was very warm, but that’s been fixed now. I was able to sleep better and recover better.”

It was one of several reasons the Belgian put forward while reflecting on a day that reshaped the general classification and saw him lose touch with the Red Jersey.

Stage 3 had begun with Evenepoel in control after his dominant time trial victory. But on the brutal slopes of Jebel Mobrah, the race turned sharply.

As the gradient pitched into double digits, the red jersey was unable to follow the decisive accelerations. He was first distanced by the strongest climbers, then forced to ride alone as the gap quickly ballooned. By the summit, he had conceded 1:44 in the general classification and dropped from race leader to 11th overall.

Up front, Antonio Tiberi rode clear to take both the stage and the red jersey, while Isaac Del Toro recovered from early difficulty to limit his losses and move into second overall at 21 seconds.

Evenepoel’s commanding position after Stage 2 had vanished in a matter of kilometres.

Evenepoel did not hide from what happened. “What happened yesterday? I was dropped,” he said with a grin.

He admitted the warning signs had been there from early in the stage. “I didn’t feel very fresh in my legs, all day long. Maybe I didn’t digest the hard effort from Tuesday properly, and I started the climb a bit too confidently.”

He also acknowledged tactical impatience on the lower slopes. “Maybe I got caught out by the first attackers. I raced a bit impulsively at the foot of the climb, and a few kilometres later I paid for it.”

The sleep issue added another layer to his explanation. “The air conditioning in my room wasn’t working. It was very warm. But that’s been fixed now.”

He stopped short of presenting it as a definitive cause, instead describing it as one factor in a day when his legs simply were not at their best. “I did everything I had to do. It was just a lesser day, I think. Maybe because of the time trial. I don’t know.”

Crucially, there was no sense of alarm. “We don’t need to panic. I’ve raced a lot already, and this is a process towards Catalonia and the Ardennes. Just stay calm and keep going. It will be fine.”

Evenepoel has already shifted his focus to the final mountain stage later in the week. “I’ve lost a lot of time, but that applies to others as well. I can still move up, and I want to win the stage.”

With the overall lead now out of reach unless further upheaval unfolds, the emphasis appears to have moved from defence to opportunism. Stage 3 may have cost him the red jersey, but it has not ended his ambitions for the week.

For now, the UAE Tour continues without its early race leader at the top of the standings. Whether his explanation lies in time trial fatigue, an overly aggressive start to the climb, a sleepless night in a warm hotel room, or a combination of all three, the result is clear: the race has shifted, and Evenepoel must now respond rather than control.