Vansummeren did not soften his verdict when assessing the chances of the former Tour stage winner making the 2026 selection. “I fear for Jordi Meeus that a Tour selection will be difficult,” he told Het Belang van Limburg — a stark reality check for a rider who has delivered on cycling’s biggest stage.

The logic behind the warning is simple. Red Bull – BORA now have three GC-calibre riders in Remco Evenepoel, Primoz Roglic and Florian Lipowitz, a trio Vansummeren believes will dictate everything from the race programme to the Tour’s support structure. “Will Red Bull – BORA – hansgrohe really focus on sprint work with GC riders like Evenepoel, Lipowitz and Roglic in the team? I don’t think so,” he said. “Especially because the Tour opens with a team time trial, where aerodynamics will be crucial.”Evenepoel gets the keys to the kingdom — but the Tour route won’t spoil himWhat makes the situation even more complex is that this shift towards full out GC support comes in a year when the Tour de France is not tailor-made for Evenepoel. “Remco is absolutely not getting a Tour that is tailor-made for him,” Vansummeren cautioned. The lack of early time trial kilometres, and the late scheduling of the TT that does exist, “already wrings for a rider who likes to rely on his time trial.”

On top of that, the parcours is brutal. “The road kicks up steeply on several occasions,” he noted — a polite acknowledgement that Evenepoel will need to produce some of the best climbing performances of his career to stay in yellow contention.

And a Tour built on relentless climbing and narrow margins leaves zero room for “luxury” selections.

Meeus caught in the crossfire of a GC arms race

For Meeus, this situation amounts to a perfect storm. A Tour route geared towards climbing and aerodynamics, a squad placing all its weight behind Evenepoel’s GC ambitions, and the added presence of Roglic and Lipowitz reinforcing that hierarchy all combine to close the door on sprinter-friendly selections.

Vansummeren argues that when a team commits to chasing the podium, riders who do not directly contribute to that mission naturally become expendable. As he phrased it, one rider’s opportunity becomes another’s disappointment.

And that leaves Meeus — the man who conquered the Champs-Elysees not long ago — looking at a 2026 Tour de France that may be slipping out of reach, not because he lacks form or ability, but because the internal dynamics at Red Bull – BORA – hansgrohe have shifted decisively away from his strengths.