The debate about Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe’s current leaders and Evenepoel is almost laughable after 2025

The energy drink brand Red Bull stepped into the cycling scene mid-2024, but it was only in 2025 that we could appreciate the full input of their new sponsorship of Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe — complete with infrastructure, expertise and serious financial muscle. The next step has been taken in what ultimately should become one of the major powerhouse teams in the peloton. The snag: results in 2025 remained somewhat underwhelming.

With much fanfare at the end of 2024, one big name after another was brought into Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe. For stage races the team was already in a reasonable position, but in the one-day domain the next leap had to be made. With Gianni Moscon, Jan Tratnik, Maxim Van Gils, Laurence Pithie, Oier Lazkano and the Van Dijke brothers Tim and Mick, the buying spree was serious.

What was the outcome? Two wins in one-day races. Yes, you read that correctly: two. Jordi Meeus won the Copenhagen Sprint in June and towards the end of the season in October he claimed Binche-Chimay-Binche. Apart from that, we only saw three national time-trial titles and the Dutch national championship win of Danny van Poppel.

In the major classics, the high-profile recruits completely failed to deliver. Partly that was down to injuries, but it was also simply due to a lack of unity and the missing shape. Pithie still took third in the Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race, and Van Gils podiumed in the Clasica San Sebastián. Yet in 2026 it will have to be much, much better.

How poor things were in the one-day races at Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe, the situation in the stage-race sphere was all the more interesting. Seventeen out of 23 victories came in stage racing, with plenty of strong finishes in the various classifications. The highlight? Florian Lipowitz’s third place in the Tour de France, as best of the rest behind Tadej Pogacar and Jonas Vingegaard.

But there was more. Primoz Roglic secured two stage wins and overall victory in the Tour de Catalonië, Sam Welsford sprinted to three wins in the Tour Down Under, Nico Denz grabbed a stage in the Giro d’Italia and in the Vuelta a España Giulio Pellizzari won a stage and was sixth overall, while Jai Hindley finished fourth in the Spanish Grand Tour.

Still, we rate the stage-race results barely as acceptable. If a season begins with Roglic, Hindley, Lipowitz, Pellizzari and also Aleksandr Vlasov and Daniel Felipe Martínez, more should be expected. Even riders like Van Gils and Finn Fisher-Black didn’t perform in week-long races as likely hoped.

You understand: we’re harsh on Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe. Many teams would have signed for 23 wins, a Tour podium and four further top-ten finishes in a Grand Tour. But this German outfit wants more — and we expected more. After a year and a half with Red Bull at the helm it’s time for a real explosion. That didn’t happen — hence the 5.2 score.

There was much debate in recent weeks and months over the arrival of Remco Evenepoel at the team. Didn’t Red Bull already have enough leaders? How would the puzzle be laid out? We prefer to flip it: the arrival of Evenepoel is not one born of luxury, but of pure necessity. The discussion about the current leaders and Evenepoel is almost amusing after 2025.

Despite all the potential in the squad there was a missing leader who truly dominated. Roglic was supposed to fill that role — but the Slovenian failed to show up. Also, Evenepoel won’t be fazed by Hindley’s fourth place in the Vuelta. So the stand-outs Lipowitz and Pellizzari must now lift themselves to a new level under a new team leader.

Evenepoel brings Mattia Cattaneo from Soudal-Quick Step and additional strong recruits include Gianni Vermeersch and Jarrad Drizners. Also rising are three talents from the development squad.

Transfers in: Remco Evenepoel, Mattia Cattaneo (both Soudal Quick-Step), Gianni Vermeersch (Alpecin-Deceuninck), Jarrad Drizners (Lotto), Callum Thornley, Adrien Boichis and Luke Tuckwell (all Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe Rookies)

Transfers out: Roger Adrià (Movistar), Matteo Sobrero (Lidl-Trek), Ryan Mullen (NSN Cycling) and Jonas Koch (quits)

Naturally we will keep an eye on the next step from Lipowitz and Pellizzari — the young German and Italian already demonstrated huge potential and delivered results in 2025. But of course our focus next season is squarely on Remco Evenepoel. The reigning Olympic and World champion in the time trial will likely aim for success across all terrains: Grand Tours, Monuments, one-day races, time trials… he can do it all.

This may also give a welcome boost to the classics core where there is abundant quality, so much that success simply must follow. Especially now that Oier Lazkano has been dismissed over a suspected doping violation.

Bram van der Ploeg (X: @BvdPloegg | e-mail: [email protected])