Remco Evenepoel explains why his best Tour de France form arrived late

The world time trial champion claimed his second victory in succession on Tuesday, producing a dominant performance in a demanding time trial just two days after winning in the mountains.

Those results marked a significant turnaround for the Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe rider, who had struggled to match the leading climbers when the intensity increased during the opening part of the race.

According to the Belgian, however, the timing of his improvement was not unexpected.

“We knew from the moment the route was announced that we really needed to be ready from stage 13 or 14 onwards,” Evenepoel said in Sporza's Vive le Vélo. “In the first week, I had difficulties when the racing became really hard.

“Now I feel that I have found better legs. There are still some very difficult stages to come, but I can continue with confidence after Sunday and today.”

Evenepoel surprised himself with the level he reached during the time trial. His team had instructed him to avoid starting too aggressively, but he was already questioning his pacing strategy after the opening kilometres.

After checking his power figures following the first major corner, Evenepoel began to wonder whether he had committed too much energy too early.

“We had agreed that I should not start too hard, but after around two kilometres I looked at the numbers and asked myself whether I had gone too fast,” he said.

The power remained high when he reached the first intermediate checkpoint, yet his physical condition showed no signs of deteriorating.

“I decided to keep pushing and ride more or less on feeling,” he said. “I was a little afraid that I might suddenly fade, but it was one of those days when I could just keep going.”

His celebrations were tempered by the withdrawal of teammate Florian Lipowitz, who crashed out of the race.

Evenepoel was not told about the incident during his ride. He only learned that Lipowitz had abandoned after reaching the finish and waiting for both his own result and Pogačar’s time to be confirmed.

“It is a very bittersweet pill for us to swallow,” Evenepoel said. “Lipo [Lipowitz] made huge sacrifices to arrive at the Tour in this shape.

“To crash out in one corner is incredibly sad for him and for the team. He is one of the best climbers in the world and we will miss him a lot in the stages that are coming.”

Lipowitz had been sitting fifth in the general classification and was expected to play an important role for Red Bull in the remaining mountain stages.

Evenepoel said the immediate priority was now his teammate’s recovery rather than the sporting consequences of his absence.

Evenepoel’s consecutive victories have also provided rare resistance to Pogačar, whose control of the race has led some observers to question whether his dominance has made the Tour less entertaining.

The Belgian rejected that view, saying Pogačar’s dominance only pushes his rivals to raise their own level.

“Personally, I do not see it as boring,” Evenepoel said at the press conference. “I think the performances he is producing are extremely impressive.

“I look up to that. I try to learn from it and I try to reach that level as well, which is not easy at all, either in training or in races.”

Evenepoel acknowledged that television viewers might become frustrated when Pogačar appears able to attack whenever he chooses. 

Inside the peloton, however, the Slovenian’s dominance is seen differently.

“For us, it is a challenge,” he said. “It is a big honour to race against a champion like that.

“He is a superstar. He is the best rider ever. We should not forget that we are witnessing history.”