Evenepoel knows exactly where he can claim the yellow jersey in the Tour de France: "After that, we’ll take it day by day"

Looking ahead to 2025, Evenepoel’s preparation will focus on peaking for the Tour de France. "Winning the time trial in stage five is absolutely the main goal for this Tour de France. We know that the yellow jersey will probably be up for grabs there. I think my first goal is to avoid unnecessary time losses in the first four stages and then take the yellow in the fifth. After that, we’ll take it day by day, just like we did in the 2022 Vuelta," the Belgian told Eurosport.

The 33-kilometer flat time trial in and around Caen seems tailor-made for Evenepoel’s strengths, so he admits. "Wearing the yellow jersey would be amazing. I need to wear it at least once. The time trial is flat and not technical at all. I think it suits me well. I have to aim for the best result possible there to create a big gap," Evenepoel explained. And if he can create that gap, the race could take an interesting turn.

The Belgian also acknowledges plenty of opportunities to improve on the French roads, as the crash in the Tour of the Basque Country put a big dent in his preparation. "I couldn't ride a bike for three weeks. My collarbone itself was fine, but my shoulder blade was damaged. I only had two months to get into top form and that was very rushed. I hope I have a better preparation this year. Without that crash, I probably could have finished five or six minutes behind Pogacar."

Beating Jonas Vingegaard and Pogacar next year, is that in the cards? No, Evenepoel doesn't see himself doing that yet. However, he believes he’s the closest contender. "It's not that I'm a bad climber and in most cases I was the third person to get to the top. That shows that the abilities to climb like Vingegaard and Pogacar are there. Of course, it's up to me to work on that even more, and to not crash prior to the Tour, so that my preparation is as smooth as possible."

"This year we didn't see a single moment when Pogacar got nervous because he was clearly a cut above the rest. There will definitely come a day when this will no longer be the case. Hopefully we'll see that change as early as next year," Evenepoel said optimistically.