"When I look at Visma now, they didn't ride a great Tour" - Patrick Lefevere hits back after criticism of Soudal - Quick-Step support for Remco Evenepoel
CyclingTuesday, 23 July 2024 at 13:00
For Patrick Lefevere, Soudal - Quick-Step and Remco Evenepoel, the 2024 Tour de France was a very joyful one. The team leader secured a podium on his debut at the French Grand Tour and super-domestique Mikel Landa very impressively took 5th overall himself.
"We are a year ahead of schedule," team boss Lefevere reflects in a post-Tour de France conversation with Het Laatste Nieuws. "I have always said that we should not aim for a podium place in the Tour before 2025. It is 2024, it is Evenepoel's first Tour and he comes third."
Ahead of the 2024 Tour de France however, there was much criticism of Soudal - Quick-Step's team built solely around supporting the time trial world champion, with many believing it was simply not up to scratch against the likes of Tadej Pogacar's UAE Team Emirates, Jonas Vingegaard's Team Visma | Lease a Bike and Primoz Roglic's Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe support.
"There is very little that was not good. Always that nagging about our team, that it is too weak, everyone can now keep quiet about that. I know where we come from, I know the efforts we have made," Lefevere fires back at the doubters feistily. "Last year we were exactly a team of bunglers. Everywhere was better than ours. When I look at Visma now, they didn't ride a great Tour either. I hear the marketing talk, that they know exactly what they are doing and that they know how many watts Tadej and Remco are going to push in the third week. Well, I haven't seen the result of that either."
"If you look at this race and you see the progress he has made mentally, then I think there is still a lot of room for improvement. You also win a Grand Tour by staying calm. By resting a lot. He is very fanatical about that. Every minute of rest he could use, he has used," Lefevere continues, full of praise for Evenepoel. "It is to Mikel Landa's credit that he kept Remco calm. Remco does look up to him."
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- Wout is an absolute warrior. Trek bossed them all. And JV was nowhere. That being said Id love to see wout winning he’s such a good guy. The giro is long so here’s hoping. I don’t like this article that he should be happy with 2ndmij10-05-2025
- Ineos pretend Thymen's loss is not a big deal, but I don't think this is a good sign. I hope Bernal is fit, would be good for him to have another shot at normal life.Ride197410-05-2025
- To finish second to Mads Petersen in a photo finish, after such a chaotic first stage where Lidl-Trek controlled the race to perfection, while the Visma team was conspicuouly absent, is nothing to be ashamed about. During the interview, Wout was visibly spent, more so than Mads.. but I felt he was more a victor than a loser, given the circumstances. I'm excited to see what Wout will do in this Giro.FredMan10-05-2025
- I feel for Spain. Landa was one of their only two realistic GC hopes.Ride197410-05-2025
- Since the TT has a lot of sharp turns, does that perhaps play in Mads' favor, since he can sprint out of corners faster than many?Ride197410-05-2025
- The point of the article is well taken. Don’t judge a riders grand tour results after one stage. But he is slowly becoming a regular second.mij10-05-2025
- I’m disagreeing with the headline and tone of the article. I don’t even see Wout quoted. And he doesn’t offer excuses. My comment stands. He has no wins in his cobbled monuments. And is second too many times. And shouldn’t accept these results.mij10-05-2025
- Hey, Wout is one of the least excuse seeking riders out there, read the article again and let’s wait and see over the 3 weeks. Also a bad sign if you’re willing to give up on him faster than himself.Mistermaumau09-05-2025
- No more than Primoz at the TdFMistermaumau09-05-2025
- Sorry but Iagree more with the article at this point of the season. Had Mads not had a perfect lead-out it would have been a done deal already.Mistermaumau09-05-2025
Visma not a good Tour? What? PL's own team took one stage win and 3 and 5 place. Visma, one stage win and 2nd and 8th place. But his team was all positive and Visma not good?
Honestly, given that they had to leave Sepp home, Wout was not up to his regular climbing prowess, nor was Wilco until the final week and Jonas had zero days of racing before the tour, I would say it was an unmitigated success for them. Unless you are comparing it to last years sweep of grand tours, in which case, yes, it was not good.
Unmitigated success and also not good - it's both for them, which is the curse of their dominance from last year, right? I mean, they were unreal, and this year they are very very real. This year's performance by Vingegaard really is impressive. I can only assume he wins a few more Grand Tours, but who knows what really happens when the effect of the recovery and exhaustion really hit him.
The Best thing for Remco would be to leave Soudal speaks a lot about PatLef and his team
Tobe fair, Soudal was actually fare better than Visma or Bora. Landa is at 5th and their team always there for Remco. Even if Kuss were there for Visma, I don't think he'll be top 5 like Landa.
Visma just being sore looser this year. They thought Jonas could still beat Tadej. Even diminishing Tadej 10 minutes domination at the Giro. Well, Tadej beat Jonas by 6 minutes. (Take that Visma) Not only Tadej won his 3rd Tour but he also completed Giro-Tour double, 12 stage wins. Jonas doesn't have the same amount of stage win than Pogi.
Twelve stage wins. And that sounds normal to you? Loser, not !ooser.
With Jonas not up to previous standard, I wonder what Kuss could have done. He's finished 12th while still being the last man riding for JV in the mountains. Jorgensen was 8th this year when he was sort of it for Visma. He lost like 10 places on the day Jonas had him shatter the field, so if he had been able to ride his pace that day, I would not have been shocked to see him finish top 5.
Kudos to Landa for a good race. I think he did poorly as a leader to Movistar, but as a 2nd option for Soudal, he looked a lot more comfortable. And let's be honest, it is a lot easier to stay high in the GC when you not constant on the front pulling for you GC leader. He did a bit here and there, but most of the time it was UAE or Visma controlling the tempo; Landa pretty much raced his own race most of the time.
wow it would have been quite the soap opera to see these two teams come together last year
What a big mouth.
He's just replying back to Visma's big mouth ! Quite the rivalry for the next years in the Tour !
Not really.
There is only one rivalry for Jonas and Visma, and it's not with Lefevere or his team.
Maybe you didn’t watch the last few stages where Visma was protecting second place.
It was just a bad day for Jonas when he couldn't even attack Remco in his terrain. Jonas conceited his fight for 1st place and tried to secure his 2nd place against Remco.
It will be very interesting next year. Remco is going to deprioritize ITT training for high and long climb training.