"You’d have thought he’d end up losing ten minutes" - Remco Evenepoel praised for grit and determination on stage 12 of 2025 Tour de France

There were some real concerns raised on stage 12 of the 2025 Tour de France when Remco Evenepoel started to get dropped with over 50km still to go. Recovering well though, the Soudal - Quick-Step leader eventually crossed the line in 7th, keeping himself on the provisional podium.

“It was phenomenal. At that point, with 54 kilometres still to go, you really feared he’d lose ten minutes," analysed former Belgian national coach Sven Vanthourenhout on Vive le Vélo, impressed by the grit and determination shown by Evenepoel to keep battling and pick off riders one by one.

"It was a complete reversal of what we’d seen from him in earlier stages,” Vanthourenhout continues. “In recent days, he often opted to ride at his own pace whenever the race kicked off in earnest, but that wasn’t the case here.”

Evenepoel even managed to himself back into contact with the GC group before the final climb, although when UAE started to light it up, he was soon dropped again, settling back into a pace he knew he could take to the line. “It was really quite remarkable. He had some early support from Ilan Van Wilder and Max Schachmann, but he did the descent and the final climb entirely on his own,” says Vanthourenhout. “He made up a lot of time solo. If we’re talking about resilience, he showed it in spades.”

That's not to say that Evenepoel and Soudal - Quick-Step were completely without criticism however. After the stage, DS Klaas Lodewyck admitted his leader hadn't reconned the stage, something Johan Bruyneel found unbelievable. “That was a mistake,” said Bruyneel. “The first mountain stage is crucial. You’ve got to be ready for it.”

Vanthourenhout quickly countered however. “We forget things very quickly,” he said, referring to Evenepoel’s accident during the winter. “When preparing for a season, you have to make choices. In a normal year, a GC rider with ambitions would have reconned that stage. And in a normal year, they would have. But because Remco was out for a few months, you’re forced to make choices and prioritise.”