{"id":345554,"date":"2025-12-13T15:00:09","date_gmt":"2025-12-13T15:00:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/345554\/"},"modified":"2025-12-13T15:00:09","modified_gmt":"2025-12-13T15:00:09","slug":"press-conference-i-would-put-remco-above-me","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/345554\/","title":{"rendered":"PRESS CONFERENCE “I would put Remco above me”"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/p>\n

We found this programme, which I really like, and I can\u2019t wait to be back at the Giro.<\/p>\n

The Giro starts in Bulgaria, where you raced early in your career. Did you ever win there?
\n
No, it will be my first time racing there. But we\u2019re kind of used to it now. Grand Tours often start abroad these days. It will be my first time there.<\/p>\n

You have good memories from the Giro but also some bad luck. Do you go there aiming for the final jersey?
\n
Of course, we go there with the mentality to fight for the race and try to win. Talking is easy and doing is another thing.<\/p>\n

We will do our best and work hard for it. The contenders will be very strong as well. At the end of the day, it\u2019s another race we need to focus on and be prepared for.<\/p>\n

Last year you rode the Tour de France with Tadej Pogacar<\/a>. Was it difficult not to go to the Tour this time?
\n
No, not really. I like to do both. Of course, the Tour is the Tour. It\u2019s a different race and a different atmosphere. When you do your first Tour, you really feel it\u2019s another level.<\/p>\n

But on the other hand, I\u2019m really looking forward to doing the Giro again. It\u2019s a beautiful race, and it\u2019s nice to change the programme sometimes.<\/p>\n

The combination of the Vuelta and the World Championships can be demanding. How do you see that?
\n
I\u2019m not a specialist in one day races. Of course, it\u2019s always a pleasure to represent my country. Maybe in the future I will try to focus more on that and aim for better results there.<\/p>\n

But the Vuelta will definitely be a main goal for me.<\/p>\n

If certain big riders go to the Vuelta, does that raise the level and motivation?
\n
I think it would be nice. It raises the level of the race and gives it more meaning. If you win there, people really understand how high the level is.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve raced against him a few times, and if he goes, it will be a nice race for sure.<\/p>\n

Did you learn anything from racing him at the World Championships?
\n
At the end of the day, it\u2019s about the legs. You can have a plan, but if your legs don\u2019t respond, there\u2019s nothing you can do.<\/p>\n

He\u2019s very smart and races a lot with his head. When he goes, he goes, there\u2019s no faking. He can surprise you, so you need to be careful.<\/p>\n

But the main thing is being strong. In cycling, that\u2019s the most important thing.<\/p>\n

Did Worlds make you think you can beat him, or that he\u2019s unbeatable?
\n
Everybody is beatable, right? Maybe not Pogacar.<\/p>\n

But I think everyone is beatable. It was a different scenario and a different approach. We have no fear of anybody.<\/p>\n

Can you elaborate on the decision to go to the Giro?
Was it your idea or the team\u2019s?
\nThe route doesn\u2019t affect it that much for me. I feel quite complete. Whether it\u2019s more mountains or more time trial, it doesn\u2019t change much.<\/p>\n

I did two Vueltas and I wanted to go back to the Giro. I spoke with the management team and they gave me the opportunity. It was quite easy.<\/p>\n

It was an idea from everyone. Everybody needs to be on the same page.<\/p>\n

Do you feel you can still close the gap to the very best riders?
\n
We all work hard with one goal. I feel I improve every year, but they also improve every year. It\u2019s not easy at all.<\/p>\n

Maybe one day I can push a little bit more, but it\u2019s a very hard task.<\/p>\n

Do you feel you need a Grand Tour win in your career?
\n
I wouldn\u2019t be disappointed if I didn\u2019t win one, but of course I would really like to.<\/p>\n

Not many riders have won a Grand Tour, especially in today\u2019s cycling. The level is extremely high. I think I was born in a very hard era.<\/p>\n

If everything goes perfectly, I think it\u2019s possible. But stronger riders don\u2019t always win either.<\/p>\n

Would you say some riders are still on another level?
\n
Yes, especially Pogacar. That\u2019s quite clear.<\/p>\n

Are you on the same level as Remco Evenepoel<\/a>?
\n
At the moment I would put Remco above me. His descending is better than mine. Climbing, sometimes yes, sometimes no.<\/p>\n

Overall, I think he\u2019s better than me right now. But we\u2019ll see.<\/p>\n

What about racing against former teammates like Jai Hindley?
\n
We were teammates before, so it will be different. But I think it will be a fair race and nice competition. I\u2019m excited for it.<\/p>\n

Some riders say they need to be realistic in this era. Do you prefer realism or dreaming big?
\n
I prefer to be realistic and focus on facts, not dreams. The facts don\u2019t lie.<\/p>\n

If I say I want to win the Tour de France against Pogacar or Vingegaard, that\u2019s almost impossible. Of course, things can happen, but it wouldn\u2019t be realistic.<\/p>\n

But even if I was born in a very competitive era, these are also some of the best years cycling has ever had. So I\u2019m glad I was born in this time.<\/p>\n

Does your programme reflect a desire to race more as a leader?
\n
Yes, definitely. I don\u2019t think he needs me to win a Grand Tour. If that was necessary, I would sacrifice myself.<\/p>\n

But I don\u2019t think that\u2019s the case. As a team, it\u2019s smarter to maximise results by splitting leadership. That\u2019s what we\u2019re doing.<\/p>\n

Any thoughts on recent incidents outside competition?
\n
As riders, we just have to deal with it and focus on the race. Personally, I don\u2019t think it changed much, but it\u2019s sad it happened. There\u2019s nothing we can do<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" We found this programme, which I really like, and I can\u2019t wait to be back at the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":345555,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[569],"tags":[64,63,784,163619,1000,89774,8396,85,6494,19805,39562],"class_list":["post-345554","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-cycling","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-cycling","tag-giro-ditalia","tag-interview","tag-joao-almeida","tag-remco-evenepoel","tag-sports","tag-tadej-pogacar","tag-uae-team-emirates-xrg","tag-vuelta-a-espana"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/345554","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=345554"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/345554\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/345555"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=345554"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=345554"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=345554"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}