Sparkling early-season form for Evenepoel prompts questions about peaking too soon, clarification about San Remo.
Remco Evenepoel (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) on the way to winning the overall standings at the Volta Comunitat Valenciana 2026 (Photo: Szymon Gruchalski/Getty Images)
Updated February 8, 2026 04:21PM
Remco Evenepoel has made clear his ambition with his new Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe squad, saying in December that, all going well, he can win this year’s Tour de France.
That race is still several months away but on Sunday he reached an important new milestone with his new team, winning what is his first stage race since moving to the German squad over the winter.
Evenepoel finished safely in the main bunch on the final stage of the Volta Comunitat Valenciana, safeguarding the yellow jersey he seized when he won Saturday’s stage to Teulada Moraira in a solo attack.
That win was his second stage victory this week, following the stage 2 time trial, while Sunday’s overall GC success marks his sixth triumph of the season.
The most notable thing about that? The tally comes after just eight days of competition, giving him a hit rate akin to Tadej Pogačar in early 2024.
Perhaps logically, Evenepoel was asked if there is possibility that he is too good, too soon?
“I hope not,” he laughed, speaking to Cycling Pro Net. “You never know, of course, but I think we have for sure a good balance between focusing and recovering as well.”
That’s important. As motivated as he is to make up for an injury-disrupted start to last season, and as psyched as he is to begin his new stint with Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe as well as possible, there is always a danger that he could be too hot out of the gate.
However his feelings are that he is on track and building well, and he believes this month should provide further confirmation of that.
‘Keep everything under control’
Remco Evenepoel (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) on the podium as winner of the Volta Communitat Valenciana, together with runner-up Joao Almeida (UAE Emirates-XRG) and his own teammate Giulio Pellizzari (Photo: Szymon Gruchalski/Getty Images)
Evenepoel is set to take an eight day break in competition, but will be back in action soon. He’s heading to the UAE Tour next week, and will line out on stage one of that race on February 16.
He had been due to clash with Tour de France rival Jonas Vingegaard there but that now won’t happen due to the Dane’s recent crash and the illness he then picked up.
Still, Evenepoel will be up against Pogačar’s UAE Emirates-XRG teammate Isaac Del Toro, one of the brightest young stars in the sport, as well as other talented rivals such as Adam Yates (UAE Emirates-XRG), Michal Storer (Tudor Pro Cycling) and Felix Gall (Decathlon CMA CGM Team).
It will be an important chance to compare his form and to see if he is indeed in a good place, or if his run of success could be due in part to the quality of the field he has been up against.
For now Evenepoel believes he is doing things right in terms of his build towards bigger goals later this year, and that he and him are doing what is needed to avoid burnout.
“There are a bit of recovery days in between,” he said, pointing out that the UAE Tour doesn’t start for some time.
“Also the race there, we all know that it can be quite easy with the bunch sprints, depending on the wind, and then there are a few days where I will need to be ready for the GC.
“It is in general not the hardest week, so let’s hope that we can keep everything under control and that I can keep growing, like we did now.”
To contest Milan-San Remo or not?
Remco Evenepoel was wearing the yellow jersey as race leader of the Volta Communitita Valenciana (Photo: Szymon Gruchalski/Getty Images)
The final day in Valenciana included a category one climb approximately halfway through but the long descent and flat roads afterwards made it unlikely that the GC would change. That didn’t deter the attacks, with 21 riders moving clear early on and seven leaders emerging from that on the climb and then being joined by two more. This group included American rider AJ August, stage winner on Friday, but the Ineos Grenadiers rider crashed around 9km to go.
UAE Team Emirates did try to split the peloton in crosswinds but that didn’t pay off for them; instead former US champion Brandon McNulty drove the pace in the finale, and helped ensure that the chasing group was just two seconds behind stage winner Raúl García (Movistar Team) and five others at the line.
Evenepoel confirmed afterwards that he never felt he was in trouble, thanking his Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe team.
He moved to Spain in the winter of 2022, with his house located approximately one kilometer from the race route on Sunday. He’ll now recover and get ready for the UAE Tour, boosted by strong morale.
“This is a nice start,” he said, according to HLN.be. “I’m going to try to hold on to this feeling. I can attack hard and then keep going. The hard work from this winter is already paying off.”
He believes things will continue to build from here.
“There’s definitely still room for improvement. If I have a smooth winter, I’m always fairly quick to get in shape. But I’m certainly not at peak form yet.”
Good results notwithstanding, he makes clear he is not tempted to change his race program and throw in an extra classic. Winning a monument is always a big deal, but he won’t be sidetracked.
“After the UAE Tour, a long altitude training camp follows,” he said. “So I definitely won’t be adding Milan-San Remo to my schedule.”