Remco Evenepoel skips Flèche Wallonne to focus on Liège-Bastogne-Liège

Remco Evenepoel will not race La Flèche Wallonne on Wednesday. The Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe rider had left the door open after winning Sunday's Amstel Gold Race, but on Monday the team confirmed he will skip the Huy race and focus on recovery ahead of Liège-Bastogne-Liège.

After crossing the line in Valkenburg, Evenepoel had sounded positive about the prospect of racing again on Wednesday. "One of the agreements was that we would assess my freshness after the Amstel, and that seems to be fine," he said. "The weather for Wednesday looks good too, so that's a plus."

In the end, Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe chose to prioritise rest. Liège-Bastogne-Liège on Sunday is the bigger prize — and Evenepoel's stated goal. "That will be my last race of this block, so I want to give absolutely everything there before taking some rest," the Belgian said on Sunday.

The decision means the anticipated head-to-head with Tour of the Basque Country winner Paul Seixas on the Mur de Huy will not happen. The two will face each other again at Liège on Sunday, where Tadej Pogačar and Tom Pidcock (Pinarello-Q36.5) are also expected to line up.

Evenepoel is a two-time winner of Liège-Bastogne-Liège. Given Sunday's performance, he will arrive in confident form.