Tim Merlier might actually get more domestiques in the Tour de France

The 32-year-old Belgian has already won ten times this season, proving himself to be the most formidable man for the opening stage in Lille. In June, he won three more times, with two stages in the Baloise Belgium Tour and the Brussels Cycling Classic. Earlier, he had already won stages in the UAE Tour and Paris-Nice, as well as races such as the Scheldeprijs.

However, Merlier realizes it starts all over again in Lille on Saturday. In his third season with Soudal Quick-Step, he will finally be able to go for stage wins in the Tour de France after a successful Giro d'Italia last year with three stage victories. Last season, the team explicitly opted for Remco Evenepoel, but now both will have their opportunities.

“We didn't hesitate,” said team manager Tom Steels. “From the moment the Tour de France route was announced, we decided we wanted to go with Tim and Remco. When you have one of the best sprinters and one of the best GC riders, you have to find a balance,” explained team manager Tom Steels.

“Our first goal is to get Remco safely to three or five kilometers from the finish, and then we'll see how technical the finish is and what we can still do for Tim,” said Steels. That role would then be assigned to Pascal Eenkhoorn and Mattia Cattaneo, who have experience in preparing sprints. Evenepoel will obviously not be used for that.

“That decision is ultimately up to me, Klaas (Lodewyck, ed.) and Brama (Davide Bramati, ed.), and we will take responsibility for it. Tim and Bert (Van Lerberghe, ed.) can also help in the hectic final stages of the race, so they are not just there for the sprint stages,” said Steels.

Merlier is confident. "The first day is immediately important because there is a big chance to win the yellow jersey. But if it doesn't work out, it's not the end of the world. We'll just try again on the other days," he added at the headquarters of sponsor Renson.

Lidl-Trek and Alpecin-Deceuninck are bringing entire trains for competitors Jonathan Milan and Jasper Philipsen, but Merlier is not afraid of that. “There are a lot of strong sprinters, but we're not lacking in confidence and motivation,” said the Belgian, who knows he has his 36-year-old regional compatriot Van Lerberghe as his last man.

“Last year, I won the European Championships with just Bert, so I'm not afraid. We have two goals, and they're not really difficult to combine,” said the sprinter, who will also have to lend a hand to Evenepoel when needed.