Remco Evenepoel is sitting on a stage in a Mallorcan arts studio, dressed in an unbranded blue hoodie, talking up his programme of racing for 2026. Alongside him, Primož Roglič, his new Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe teammate, cranes his neck and stares a little disinterestedly at the ceiling. In the twilight of his career, nothing seems to impress Roglič that much anymore. When Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe’s big-name, big-money signing is unveiled to the world’s media on a balmy winter afternoon, the Slovenian looks on the verge of stifling a yawn.
‘Been there, done that,’ Roglič’s body language says, not that his indifference is ever likely to deflect his young Belgian teammate’s burning ambition. In what was the most anticipated transfer deal yet in the WorldTour peloton, Evenepoel has been hired to topple Tadej Pogačar and win the Tour de France. Now, as they gather at training camp, his new team is swinging into action behind him.