Belgian expert sees Evenepoel's maturity shine through in his 2026 programme: 'Vingegaard doesn’t do it either'

With the announcement of its 2026 race calendar, Red Bull–BORA–hansgrohe made one thing immediately clear: the team wants to go all-in for the Tour de France. With Remco Evenepoel and Florian Lipowitz as joint leaders, the German squad will head to France with a dual-pronged approach. But is that a good idea, or should there be a clearer hierarchy? Belgian analist José De Cauwer shares his view.

One of the biggest talking points in Evenepoel’s programme was his absence from the Tour of Flanders. For a while, it looked as though the Belgian Grand Tour contender would finally make his debut in Vlaanderens Mooiste, but that is now off the table. Instead, he will focus on the Ardennes classics before placing the Tour de France firmly at the top of his priorities.

As a fan, De Cauwer admits he would love to see his compatriot take the start in De Ronde. “But the big goal for Evenepoel and his team is to win the Tour de France,” he says in his analysis for Sporza. “Or at least to give it a proper try. They want to avoid looking back in July thinking Remco raced too much or took unnecessary risks.”

Moreover, Evenepoel has reached a point where he cannot show up at the Ronde simply to participate. “Evenepoel has become too strong a rider to show up at Flanders just to be part of the race. If he comes, he has to fight for the win. Otherwise it’s foolish to take that risk."

Tadej Pogacar has already won the Tour of Flanders twice, but that should not be treated as the new normal. “We’ve come out of a period where Grand Tour riders hardly did any classics. Now you have Tadej Pogacar who takes everything on, and we all think it’s fantastic. But if Pogacar didn’t do this, we wouldn’t even be talking about it.”

“Vingegaard doesn’t do it either, and he’s the one Evenepoel has to try to surpass first if he wants to climb the pecking order,” De Cauwer also knows.“If you strip away the emotion, this is exactly the programme you would recommend to Evenepoel if he wants to close the gap to Pogacar.”' Last season, Evenepoel was beaten by Pogačar in every one-day race they contested - and also in the Tour, where the Belgian abandoned.

Alongside Florian Lipowitz, Evenepoel is expected to form a duo capable of challenging the seemingly unbeatable world champion. De Cauwer believes having a strong co-leader will undoubtedly help. “I think Evenepoel–Lipowitz can work the same way Vingegaard–Roglic once did. Together, they forced Pogacar into mistakes.”

In 2022, Roglic and Vingegaard were Jumbo-Visma's co-leaders at the Tour. With the tenacity of ten men, the pair managed to tire out yellow jersey wearer Pogacar on the Col du Galibier, before the Slovenian was demolished on the Col du Granon by his Danish rival. Evenepoel and Lipowitz could do the same, but there is also a danger in the tactic.

Because Lipowitz is not just any rider. Last season he was one of the most consistent Grand Tour performers, finishing third in the Tour de France and rounding off a breakout year. He is also six months younger than his Belgian teammate. “It could become a problem if Lipowitz gets even better,” De Cauwer warns. “Then you might see situations where Evenepoel has to hold back if Lipowitz attacks.”