Primo\u017e Rogli\u010d<\/a> \u2014 who sat uncomfortably on stage as the Belgian media peppered Evenepoel with questions \u2014 will make a bid for a record fifth Vuelta a Espa\u00f1a title. Jai Hindley and Giulio Pellizzari will spearhead the team\u2019s Giro ambitions.<\/p>\n\u2018It\u2019s not the end of the world\u2019
\n![\"Lipowitz\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/SI202507241906-720x480.jpg\"\/)
Lipowitz will share top billing with Evenepoel at the Tour. (Photo: Maximilian Fries \/ Red Bull )<\/p>\n
If Evenepoel was expecting solo billing at the Tour, he was in for a surprise.<\/p>\n
Despite the Quick-Step buyout worth an estimated $50 million, Evenepoel will be sharing the spotlight at the Tour de France next season.<\/p>\n
\u201cI only found out yesterday that I\u2019m riding the Tour,\u201d Evenepoel said. \u201cIt\u2019s still early to talk about it \u2013 it\u2019s pretty new to me. We still have time to learn how to race together. But mostly, it\u2019s a good thing. We can only try.\u201d<\/p>\n
Evenepoel seemed as stunned as everyone else that he would be co-leader with Lipowitz at the Tour.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s not the end of the world to go with two leaders,\u201d the Belgian said as he shared the stage with the young German, who matched Evenepoel\u2019s third in 2025.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Tour means a lot to me. I finished third in my first participation. Last year was a completely different story. This will be the first time I\u2019m going to the Tour with double leadership,\u201d Evenepoel said.<\/p>\n
Lipowitz \u2014 who confirmed a long-term deal to stay in Red Bull colors to shut down transfer rumors \u2014 said he welcomed the co-leadership blueprint.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s always good to go to a grand tour with two leaders,\u201d the German said. \u201cI can also learn a lot from Remco. And together we can play a slightly different game.\u201d<\/p>\n
That plan worked against Poga\u010dar in 2022 when now-Visma-Lease a Bike toppled Poga\u010dar with the double punch of Rogli\u010d and Jonas Vingegaard.<\/p>\n
Red Bull is hoping lightning strikes twice in what\u2019s a bit of a stunner for everyone.<\/p>\n
Odd man out? Sending Rogli\u010d to the Vuelta
\n![\"Roglic\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/SI202507261780-720x480.jpg\"\/)
Rogli\u010d will race the Vuelta to target a record fifth win. (Photo: Maximilian Fries \/ Red Bull Content Pool )<\/p>\n
Another big shocker was in store for Rogli\u010d, who crashed out of the 2024 Tour and did not inspire in 2025 with eighth overall.<\/p>\n
The team is packing him off to the Vuelta, where he will try to win a record fifth red jersey.<\/p>\n
The Giro will also see double leaders \u2014 what can you expect with a team loaded with GC talent? \u2014 with Pellizzari and 2022 Giro winner Hindley heading to Italy in May.<\/p>\n
New sports manager Zak Dempster outlined the team\u2019s plan to spread the wealth across the three major grand tours.<\/p>\n
\u201cFirst, second, third, that has been the team\u2019s grand tour record over the past two seasons,\u201d Dempster said. \u201cOf course, we want to continue in that direction and demonstrate an exciting style of racing that is part of our DNA.\u201d<\/p>\n
Evenepoel rules out Giro and Flanders<\/p>\n
Evenepoel used his first Red Bull media day to announce the first pillars of his 2026 schedule. Nothing earth-shattering, no over-reaching.<\/p>\n
He will debut with his new team on January 29 in the team time trial at the Challenge Mallorca, followed by Valencia, Catalunya, the Ardennes, and ultimately the Tour de France.<\/p>\n
He admitted the Giro route tempted him, but duty calls when you\u2019re one of cycling\u2019s top-paid cyclists.<\/p>\n
\u201cI would have loved to have gone to the Giro. I was a real fan of the course,\u201d he said. \u201cIf I combined the Giro and the Tour, there would be a lot to do in a short period, and it would be difficult to peak again at the world championships in Canada.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Giro-Tour double, and a world championships only six weeks after the Tour, proved unrealistic. Only Poga\u010dar has proven he can do that.<\/p>\n
Instead, Evenepoel wants to rebuild consistency in what he knows is a pivotal season in his already prolific career.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe mainly want to have a normal season,\u201d Evenepoel said flatly. \u201cI want to get back to the level I was at before.\u201d<\/p>\n
After a rollercoaster 2025 season marked by an off-season injury, normal sounds pretty good right now.<\/p>\n
Evenepoel\u2019s 2026 race calendar <\/p>\n
Mallorca Challenge \u2014 Jan 24\u2013Feb 1
Volta a Valenciana \u2014 Feb 4\u20138
Volta a Catalunya \u2014 Mar 24\u201330
Amstel Gold Race \u2014 Apr 20
La Fl\u00e8che Wallonne \u2014 Apr 23
Li\u00e8ge\u2013Bastogne\u2013Li\u00e8ge \u2014 Apr 27
Tour de France \u2014 Jul 5\u201327<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Red Bull dished out some surprises Wednesday in mapping out its grand tour plans for 2026: Evenepoel will…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":337275,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[445],"tags":[49,48,635,54263,82,112865,73156,73157,107035,118060,54267],"class_list":{"0":"post-337274","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-cycling","8":"tag-ca","9":"tag-canada","10":"tag-cycling","11":"tag-parent_category-road","12":"tag-sports","13":"tag-tag-florian-lipowitz","14":"tag-tag-giulio-pellizzari","15":"tag-tag-jai-hindley","16":"tag-tag-primoz-roglic","17":"tag-tag-red-bull-bora-hansgrohe","18":"tag-type-article"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/337274","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=337274"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/337274\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/337275"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=337274"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=337274"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=337274"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
![\"Red](\"https:\/\/velo.outsideonline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/unnamed-19.jpg\")
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