Remco Evenepoel Leads Red Bull-Bora-hansgrohe at Tour de France

Remco Evenepoel will co-lead Red Bull-Bora-hansgrohe at the Tour de France, the team confirmed on Friday morning. He will be joined by Florian Lipowitz, Jai Hindley, Maxim Van Gils, Mattia Cattaneo, Jan Tratnik, Nico Denz and Tim van Dijke.

The news was expected, but still significant, as Red Bull will line up with the two third-placed riders from the last two editions.

Remco Evenepoel finished third at the 2024 Tour de France, but faded after winning the individual time trial at last year's race, eventually leaving the race on stage 14.

The team have already expressed that the road will decide who is the out-and-out leader at the Tour, but going in with two solid GC options will allow them to challenge other teams in a different way.

Remco Evenepoel hasn't raced since Liège-Bastogne-Liège, preferring to train away from competition.

He won Valenciana and finished fifth at Catalunya.

Lipowitz has had the better season in general classification terms, finishing on the podium at the Tour de Romandie, Itzulia Basque Country and the Volta a Catalunya, and winning the Tour of Slovenia.

The team boss Ralph Denk told *Het Laatste Nieuws* and *Het Nieuwsblad* that Remco is still the team leader and Florian Lipowitz is a bit of the second man but in terms of sporting performance, they are on equal footing.

Zak Dempster, chief of sports at Red Bull, said the Tour is no longer won by an exceptional rider alone, but by an exceptional team.

The strength of this roster goes far beyond Remco and Florian, said sports director Patxi Vila.

The team has experienced climbers, strong all-rounders and riders capable of taking responsibility in every race situation.

Every Tour develops its own dynamic, and with this team we have an answer to almost every possible scenario.

Remco Evenepoel and Florian Lipowitz will have to fight it out between themselves on the road, said team boss Ralph Denk.

Jai Hindley is another GC option, having finished third at the Giro d'Italia already this season.

The Tour de France will start on a date to be announced, with Remco Evenepoel and his team looking to make an impact.

Remco Evenepoel's preparation for the Tour de France has been going well, with the team looking to challenge for the top spots.

The road will decide who is the out-and-out leader at the Tour, but for now, Remco Evenepoel and Florian Lipowitz are co-leaders of Red Bull-Bora-hansgrohe.