"You can no longer hide – your legs will have to do the talking" - Remco Evenepoel prepared for biggest test yet at 2025 Tour de France
Cycling
With 11 stages in the legs, it is time for the first potentially decisive day of the 2025 Tour de France. For Remco Evenepoel, it's the first time his climbing legs will really be tested against the likes of Tadej Pogacar and Jonas Vingegaard.
"The first proper mountain stage is always a bit special. You can no longer hide – your legs and your power will have to do the talking," previews the Soudal - Quick-Step leader at the start of the day. "I expect a big fight early on to get into the day’s breakaway. Will Team Visma | Lease a Bike go all out from the start? If they do, they risk burning through a lot of energy for nothing."
"I need to try to reach the final two climbs as economically as possible," he adds. "That’s where Visma will likely ramp up the pace to make the group as small as they can. Then it’s all about survival to the finish line."
With Pogacar having gone down in a dramatic crash on stage 11, there is the possibility to test the Slovenian world champion. Evenepoel though, is looking to himself first and foremost. "That’s possible. But I mainly want to focus on myself and stay with the top contenders for as long as I can," he says of his tactics. "It’s clear the white and yellow jersey teams will dictate how the race unfolds today."
As noted by Soudal - Quick-Step DS Klaas Lodewyck, it's not all about the summit finish at Hautacam either. "The Col du Soulor shouldn’t be underestimated, but I think the final ascent will be the most challenging. That’s when the racing really heats up," he explains. "Remco is ready. He’s confident. We’re curious ourselves, to be honest. We’ve already tackled a few climbs in this Tour, but nothing of this magnitude."
"Yesterday’s stage was brutally fast, and now we’ve got a tough run of days ahead. We’ll see how his body holds up," Lodewyck concludes. "We’re not concerned about the white jersey at the moment. He just needs to come through each day safely and steadily. Just look at what happened to Pogačar yesterday – you never know. We'll see where we stand come the evening."
Kieran WoodDeputy Editor-in-Chief
Kieran Wood is a sports journalist based in Wales and has been active in journalism since 2022. He regularly contributes to DartsNews.com and CyclingUpToDate.com, where he covers professional cycling and darts. In cycling, his work includes liveblogs from major races, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España, alongside race reports and analysis. He has also conducted interviews with professional riders.
His reporting spans the full racing calendar, from one-day classics to stage races, with a focus on accurate, real-time coverage and clear contextual analysis. For statistics, results, and historical context, he regularly uses resources such as ProCyclingStats. To support reporting on rider activity and training context where relevant, he also references Strava.
In his work, Kieran places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles as new, verified information becomes available.
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- 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
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