Patrick Lefevere was satisfied with Remco Evenepoel’s performance at the Tour de France after the Belgian rider took a podium place on his debut in the race.
“There is very little that was not good,” Lefevere told Het Laatste Nieuws. “Everyone can keep quiet now about our team, that it is too weak. I know where we come from, I know the efforts we have made. We are a year ahead of schedule. I have always said that we should not aim for a podium finish at the Tour before 2025. We are in 2024, it is Evenepoel’s first Tour and he comes third.”
Lefevere states that Evenepoel has grown mentally. That he took a good rest and struck when he could. Mikel Landa had an important role in that area.
“It is Mikel Landa’s credit that he kept Remco calm. In addition to ensuring that he stayed as close to Remco as possible, that was also a major role for Landa. If you take someone like Landa into the team, who has ridden so many Grand Tours and won races with great riders, you also expect him to transfer his experience to Remco,” said Lefevere.
Lefevere was also asked how Soudal Quick-Step bridged the gap with UAE Emirates and Visma.
“Last year we were just a team of bunglers. It was better everywhere than ours. When I look at Visma now, they didn’t ride a great Tour. I hear the marketing talk, that they know exactly what they are doing and that they know how many watts Tadej and Remco will push in the third week. Well, I haven’t seen the result of that.”
“Last year they won three Grand Tours, this year none. Maybe they will win the Vuelta. Or maybe we will win the Vuelta. Should we intervene somewhere? All in due time.”
