Soudal-QuickStep boss Patrick Lefevere has confirmed that star rider Remco Evenepoel may certainly be taking up a brand new set of Classics subsequent spring, whereas additionally giving an replace on the staff’s contract and switch state of affairs for 2025.
Last week, Lefevere confirmed in an interview with La Dernière Heure that Evenepoel would possibly effectively race Milan-San Remo and the Tour of Flanders subsequent spring, whereas nonetheless holding the Tour de France in his sights in July.
Speaking to José De Cauwer for Het Nieuwsblad, the veteran staff boss confirmed that his staff chief bought in contact on the day of Paris-Roubaix to place ahead the tentative plans for subsequent spring.
“I’ll let you know the entire story. As everybody is aware of, this 12 months I used to be sick on the day of Paris-Roubaix,” Lefevere stated. “Problems with my abdomen. After a complete weekend of low-fat yoghurt, I went to get a lasagna on the Italian restaurant in our neighbourhood on Sunday.
“Anyway, in entrance of my TV, in entrance of my lasagna, I begin to textual content with Remco. He sends me a message – ‘Patrick, as for the previous few weeks… Next 12 months might be totally different. I’m going to become involved’.
“I feel Milan-San Remo and the Tour of Flanders are possible in his programme,” Lefevere concluded. “After that, you’ll be able to perhaps add Liège-Bastogne-Liège as effectively. The Tour de France remains to be distant by then.”
The plan would characterize a significant change for the Belgian squad’s spring planning after a number of seasons blighted by a relative lack of success on the cobbled Classics.
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Once the staff which set the tone in March and April, QuickStep have solely received Kuurne-Brussel-Kuurne up to now three seasons, with Evenepoel swooping in at Liège in each 2022 and 2023 to ‘save’ their spring.
This 12 months, Tim Merlier’s second place on the Classic Brugge-De Panne was their greatest return as they closed out the cobbled marketing campaign with 18th and thirty sixth locations at Flanders and Roubaix. In latest seasons, the staff has turned their focus away from the Classics and extra in direction of supporting Evenepoel’s GC ambitions, although Lefevere remains to be aiming to strengthen his Classics squad.
“Oier Lazkano I feel is a rider who would match very effectively with us and we actually went after him,” Lefevere stated when requested about potential strikes for the Basque racer and Laurence Pithie, two standout riders of the spring.
“[QuickStep masseuse and scout] Johan Molly has casual contact with quite a lot of French and Spanish riders and thru him we knew Lazkano was additionally keen to hitch.
“But his supervisor is Giuseppe Acquadro and he began enjoying the sport. He guess on 5 totally different horses and drove up the value, which, after all, is his proper. Lazkano is gone, I feel. We have not heard something extra about it.”
Despite being unlikely to convey aboard Lazkano or the seemingly Bora-Hansgrohe-bound Pithie, Lefevere will nonetheless have gaps to fill for 2025, even when there are fewer riders on the staff out of contract on the finish of this season.
“We solely have seven riders who’ve reached the tip of their contracts. Last 12 months there have been 18. The staff will certainly not look very totally different subsequent 12 months. The intention can also be to increase a lot of the riders who at the moment are on the finish of their contracts,” he stated earlier than giving an replace on the Julian Alaphilippe contract state of affairs.
“Despite all of the video games that at the moment are being performed with TotalEnergies and Cofidis, his supervisor Dries Smets has let it’s identified that Julian nonetheless needs to return again with us once more.
“I have never stated ‘no’, however the timing has been incorrect within the media. I learn all over the place, ‘Lefevere needs to take a seat collectively for the Giro.’ Whereas I stated, ‘on the earliest after the Giro’.”