It had been in the air for a while, but now there is official confirmation: Remco Evenepoel will switch after this season from Soudal Quick-Step to Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe. The high-profile transfer caused quite a stir, especially in the Belgian media. Evenepoel has noticed this as well, Patrick Lefevere indicated in the podcast Derailleur by Pickx Sports.
The former CEO of Soudal Quick-Step comments on the move of his former protégé. "I haven’t been in contact with him for a while now. Usually, it’s via WhatsApp. And he said, 'Once the storm has calmed down, we’ll meet up.' I don’t want to bother him now. Recently, he was in Livigno and I’m not going to drive all the way there just to see him," Lefevere laughs. "But I still hear from him and his mom."
Has Evenepoel actually struggled with all the attention surrounding his transfer? "That doesn’t leave anyone untouched. It brings some stress," Lefevere says. "I see with certain riders who are going through similar situations that they suddenly don’t perform as well. You see that with transfers in football too. It definitely impacts someone’s life and environment."
Remco Evenepoel| Race | Date |
|---|---|
 Trofeo Ses Salines | 29 Jan |
| Volta Comunitat Valenciana | 4 Feb - 8 Feb |
| Volta Ciclista a Catalunya | 23 Mar - 29 Mar |
 Amstel Gold Race | 19 Apr |
| Liège-Bastogne-Liège | 26 Apr |
 Tour Auvergne - Rhône-Alpes | 7 Jun - 14 Jun |
| Tour de France | 4 Jul - 26 Jul |
 Grand Prix Cycliste de Québec | 11 Sep |
| Grand Prix Cycliste de Montréal | 13 Sep |
| UCI World Championship Montréal TT | 20 Sep |
| UCI World Championship Montréal | 27 Sep |
Evenepoel, regarded as the best Belgian cyclist currently, always attracts a lot of attention, especially in a cycling-crazed country like Belgium. Does a transfer to the German Red Bull-BORA-Hansgrohe perhaps bring some more peace? "The media will stay, you know. Wherever Remco is, the media are," Lefevere counters.
"He will also continue living in Schepdaal. That small circle – parents, in-laws – he won’t leave that. He does have a base in Calpe and trains there a lot, but if you really want a break, you have to go to Andorra or Monaco, and that’s less his thing. For now, he manages without."
Remco Evenepoel
