{"id":737902,"date":"2026-06-15T08:35:16","date_gmt":"2026-06-15T08:35:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/737902\/"},"modified":"2026-06-15T08:35:16","modified_gmt":"2026-06-15T08:35:16","slug":"i-see-more-of-a-one-day-rider-in-him-michael-booger-questions-evenepoels-grand-tour-credentials","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/737902\/","title":{"rendered":"\u201cI see more of a one-day rider in him\u201d: Michael Booger questions Evenepoel\u2019s Grand Tour credentials"},"content":{"rendered":"

Remco Evenepoel<\/a>‘s reported training numbers have generated considerable discussion ahead of the Tour de France, with claims that the Belgian reached an FTP of 425 watts<\/a> during a recent altitude camp. While the figures underline the Red Bull – BORA – hansgrohe<\/a> leader\u2019s exceptional physical condition, not everyone is convinced that they automatically translate into Grand Tour success. Former professional rider Michael Boogerd<\/a> is among those who remain sceptical about Evenepoel\u2019s ability to consistently match cycling\u2019s top stage-race specialists in the high mountains.The reported FTP value attracted widespread attention, with cycling journalist and data analyst Benji Naesen describing 425 watts as an exceptionally high figure. \u201c425 watts is a particularly high value,\u201d Naesen said<\/a>. \u201cIt shows that the best version of Remco can absolutely fight for a podium place in the Tour.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

At the same time, Naesen cautioned against drawing definitive conclusions from training data alone. \u201cWe always have to be careful when talking about numbers,\u201d he explained. \u201cHeat, fatigue, tactics and minor physical problems all play a role.\u201d<\/p>\n

Former Dutch rider and current analyst Michael Boogerd appears to share that cautious view, although he went considerably further in his assessment of the Belgian. Boogerd argued that Evenepoel has yet to fully convince him as a Grand Tour contender despite his achievements.<\/p>\n

\u201cEvenepoel rode a very good Tour two years ago, but in all his other Grand Tours I never found him particularly impressive,\u201d Boogerd said. \u201cNot even in the Vuelta that he won [in 2022].\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Remco<\/p>\n

Remco Evenepoel at the 2026 Li\u00eage-Bastogne-Li\u00e8ge<\/p>\n

Doubts over the biggest climbs<\/p>\n

Boogerd suggested that the decisive difference emerges when the strongest climbers raise the pace in the mountains. \u201cI see more of a one-day rider in him,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen Tadej Pogacar<\/a> and Jonas Vingegaard<\/a> really start climbing hard, he also comes up short. That is not a disgrace, but it is an observation.\u201d<\/p>\n

With the Tour de France approaching, Evenepoel will soon have the opportunity to respond on the road as he attempts to challenge the sport\u2019s two best Grand Tour riders and prove that his impressive training numbers can translate into results in the mountains.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Remco Evenepoel‘s reported training numbers have generated considerable discussion ahead of the Tour de France, with claims that…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":737903,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[445],"tags":[49,48,635,5900,136283,18460,5901,82,1422],"class_list":["post-737902","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-cycling","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-cycling","tag-jonas-vingegaard","tag-michael-boogerd","tag-red-bull-bora-hansgrohe","tag-remco-evenepoel","tag-sports","tag-tadej-pogacar"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/737902","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=737902"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/737902\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/737903"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=737902"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=737902"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=737902"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}