Control is fast becoming the key for the German team. With Evenepoel initially planned to compete in next month’s Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, but ultimately opted to skip the race. Evenepoel himself has been at altitude in Sierra Nevada having not raced since in over a month after his third place in Liège-Bastogne-Liège.
Finishing in third place at the 2024 Tour de France, the Belgian arrived at last year’s edition after an injury-disrupted winter affecting his ability to repeat the performances that sealed him as the definitive next-best behind Jonas Vingegaard and Tadej Pogacar the summer before.
Evenepoel being prepared “to the last millimeter”
The specific approach has allowed them to tailor their approach to the last ‘millimeter’ with total focus on the Tour. “You never know how things will go, whether he’ll be very fast or more relaxed. We want to maintain control of the workload, the motivation, the progress, and the schedule. We want to prepare him down to the last millimeter for the Tour.”
Insinuating that Evenepoel is yet to reach the pinnacle of his form in training that comes with higher intensity and targeted sessions – Vila insisted that a house can’t be built without its foundations.
The Sports Director highlighted “the foundations of the house, before more specific work in the coming weeks” as he indicated that the Belgian will focus on higher intensity training in the weeks before the Tour.
This year’s Tour de France is already set to be one of the most exciting in recent years. With Florain Lipowitz also preparing for a general classification bid, Evenepoel knows that Pogacar and Vingegaard are the definitive top two to beat. But they’re not alone after Paul Seixas confirmed his participation after the teenage sensation enjoyed an impressive opening to the season.