"They don't have the resources" - Ex-pro says the fairy tale of Evenepoel and Quick-Step couldn't have lasted forever

Soudal - Quick-Step is preparing for a future without Remco Evenepoel. The 25-year-old will part ways with Wolfpack at the end of the year. Over the course of seven seasons at the team, he has won Vuelta a Espana, became a three-time World Champion and also won two Olympic gold medals. But what's missing in his palmares is a Tour de France title and with that goal in mind, Evenepoel joins Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe in 2026.

"There aren't many teams that can afford him," former professional Lars van den Berg explained to Eurosport. In case of the Olympic champion, there were only two logical options on the table: "If you want to beat Pogacar, you can't go to UAE. Evenepoel can't go to Visma either. That leaves only Red Bull and INEOS as options. I think it's quite logical for him to go to Red Bull."

However the coin has two sides and there will be those who won't be as happy with Evenepoel's move in the German team. "I think it's less logical from Red Bull's perspective, as they have Roglic and especially Lipowitz. Given his age, I'd bet on Lipowitz. Now they're investing heavily to sign Evenepoel, and it's becoming more difficult to allocate spots in the team."

Another point of view is obviously that of Soudal - Quick-Step. Over the past years, they invested heavily in a mountain support for Evenepoel despite a limited budget. But without achieving the desired goal - Tour de France victory.

Van den Berg thinks this commitment was the only reason Evenepoel resisted offers of other teams for so long: "Otherwise, he would have left even sooner. It was immediately assumed he would win a few editions of the Tour. It's logical to want to build a team around such a talented Belgian rider. Now, Soudal - Quick-Step might see that winning the Tour will be a difficult undertaking for Remco."

Soudal - Quick-Step have really gone the extra mile to support Evenepoel's dream. The signings of stars such as Mikel Landa with the goal to be a domestique for Evenepoel confirms the intention. But while Quick-Step had to bend backwards to find any difference-making mountain helper for Evenepoel, teams like Visma and UAE have a whole bunch of often better riders to support Vingegaard and Pogacar.

Then it became logical for Evenepoel to look at a team that can support his dream better. "The team brought in Landa and Vervaeke, and Van Wilder joined from DSM. They've shown they really wanted to make something of it, but they don't have the resources that Visma and UAE have."