Volta a Catalunya - Remco Evenepoel ready to let 'the legs do the talking'; Tom Pidcock expecting Jonas Vingegaard attack on La Molina
Cycling
The fifth stage of the Volta a Catalunya is going to provide a lot of action, with 4500 climbing meters and a difficult summit finish in La Molina, on the Coll de Pal. Jonas Vingegaard is the man to beat at the start of the day, but both Remco Evenepoel and Tom Pidcock are expected to be headliners on the queen stage of the race.
The leader of Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe could enjoy a virtual recovery day this Thursday as the opening mountain stage was cut short, and is heading into the mountains with some more time to have his wounds healed. "I feel normal. I had a good night and didn't feel anything special," Evenepoel said this morning to Sporza. He is having two kilometers less to race today, as the Coll de Pal summit finish has been cut from 16 to 14 kilometers in length due to the very strong winds which also cut the previous stage.
It's not something that changes the Belgian's opinion on the stage. "Ultimately, it remains a 16-kilometer climb. It will be long enough to race. Do I expect big differences? The wind is mainly against us on the final climb, so that could cause congestion. But the racing will undoubtedly be fast-paced early on".
He was reluctant regarding stating specific ambitions, unlike his DS Klaas Lodewyck and Patxi Villa who spoke more openly about the expectations following yesterday's stage, and gave a short answer regarding what he expects from the day: "The wind in the mountains might die down a bit. The start will likely be a tailwind, so it will be a very fast start to the first climb. From then on, it will be constantly uphill or downhill, so the legs will do the talking."
Tom Pidcock expects Jonas Vingegaard attack
On the Pinarello - Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team camp there certainly wasn't disappointment after learning of today's stage getting cut slightly. Although the change is not significant, if anything it plays into Tom Pidcock's favour with the less longer effort.
“It's a little less threatening. It would have been more than 50 minutes of climbing, a very long climb, so I think it's probably better for me if it's a little shorter. We'll see. Today it definitely seems windier than yesterday, but I think on the hills up there, in the valleys, maybe it won't be so bad. We'll see," he told CyclingPro.net this morning. But the Briton knows that being second in the overall classification, currently ahead of Evenepoel and Jonas Vingegaard, does not mean much in such as stage.
“Jonas Vingegaard hasn't been interested in time bonus seconds so far. He knows he can win the race with a strong attack and a good margin, so we expect that," he admits. "But Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe has the strongest team, and we can expect them to do something today.”
Like Evenepoel, he doesn't put a label on the result he seeks, something which is regular on the opening mountain stage of a race. "Being essentially fighting for the win would be fine with me. Winning or being the strongest on such a long climb, I don't know, but we'll see," he concluded.
Rúben SilvaEditor-in-Chief
A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
Beyond editorial work, he has been closely involved in the expansion and coordination of CyclingUpToDate’s wider network, helping establish and support sister platforms across multiple languages. This includes ongoing collaboration with CiclismoAlDia (Spanish), CiclismoAtual (Portuguese), WielrennenUpToDate (Dutch), and RadsportAktuell (German), contributing to a shared editorial vision and consistent international coverage.
He also helps oversee editorial governance across the network, setting standards for accuracy and consistency and coordinating updates or corrections when needed.
Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
Within 18 months of launch, he helped grow CyclingUpToDate’s English-language platform into one of the most-read cycling news websites, built entirely from the ground up. As both a professional journalist and lifelong cycling enthusiast, his focus remains on delivering accurate, timely, and well-contextualized coverage.
claps 0visitors 0
Just in
Popular news
Latest comments
- many people advise him to grow slowly and rather do giro and/or vuelta instead of tdf. but i can totally understand that he is not satisfied with taking over once pogi declines, but instead beat him in his prime. so if he goes for tdf again, i‘m all for it. let‘s hope that pogi recovers soon!Ketterechts07-11-2026
- So gracious to offer something no-one would be prepared to pay for. The Giro is not the Tour and doesn’t command the same interest or attract the same “elite” (those willing to pay to be a part of something they consider has ego boosting potential). Roadside viewing will always largely remain free for everyone outside circuits. Introduction of a symbolic entrance to mountain climbs is worthy of exploration. Asking 1-2€ isn’t going to repulse real fans (most will spend 50-100€ on their outing that day all things included) but will prevent a portion of the total knobhead thrillseekers who will join in any large gathering as long as it’s free, just because they’re attracted to crowds, without which it it difficult for them to work up their anti-social behaviour.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- How is radio going to help when someone went over a cliff or bridge or off the roadside into a forest unnoticed and is laying there unconscious?Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- Yep, next we’ll be accusing F1 drivers of avoiding Le Mans.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- But on what is that opinion based? Are you holding him to a different standard than others? Are you saying he should do learn to like something he doesn’t Are you saying he hasn’t achieved enough Are you saying he pretends to be better than his results? It’s actually a really strange opinion to oust if you consider it objectively or rationally. Try applying it to others or yourself by asking if not EVERYONE should then be doing more? Nobody in athletics or swimming gets criticism for not expanding their repertoire when a rival or someone else does. In fact, most who move to another event get accused of running from their rival. Opinions are boring, the reasons behind them are what count.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- for a medical chief to throw things like is just bad. There are already radios which were banned for spectacle. allow radios. Gps trackers are not a complete solutionabstractengineer07-11-2026
- Yeah man...PogiSloFans07-11-2026
- any rider less than 25 whether they are really ready for the position of leadership of GT is probably not the case. I think Pogi himself suffered when he was defeated by Jonas in the TDF twice. But that would be the team's job to ensure support so that they can bounce back. It requires a team and time to get back up and win after getting knocked down.abstractengineer07-11-2026
- I'm very glad he got the big late Quickstep Vuelta win and I hope he has a few left for Euskaltel-Euskadi.flyer07-11-2026
- My memories of Ivan Basso aren't good but I liked his sister Elisa ok.flyer07-11-2026
Loading
Write a comment