"There is already a contract for Evenepoel with INEOS. The deal between him and the British team will be completed" - Reports say there's no chance of Evenepoel riding for Visma-Soudal merger

The proposed merger between Jumbo-Visma and Soudal - Quick-Step has left a lot of questions regarding riders futures. One such case is Remco Evenepoel and according to L'Equipe, there's no chance staying on if a merger does take place.

"Everyone in the cycling industry knows that Evenepoel would never ride in Plugge's team," an anonymous source tells the well-respected French outlet. "As soon as the merger is completed and finalized, Plugge's team will take the upper hand and all contracts of the Lefevere team will be annulled. There is already a contract for Evenepoel with INEOS. The deal between him and the British team will be completed within five minutes."

INEOS Grenadiers have been frantically searching for a new general classification leader in recent weeks, reportedly making contact with Tadej Pogacar and Primoz Roglic alongside their long-standing interest in Evenepoel.

Around the cycling world, all eyes are on Jumbo-Visma, Soudal- Quick-Step and the possible domino effect that the merger could produce in what has been one of the most remarkable transfer windows in memory.

People from Evenepoel's entourage according to today's L'Equipe: "Everyone knows that Remco will never ride for Plugge. When the merger will happen, he will just sign his contract (already written) with Ineos. In 5 minutes, it will be done."

— Mihai Simion (@faustocoppi60) October 1, 2023