Vanthourenhout's Red Bull move 'not connected' to Evenepoel transfer
The former Belgian national coach has declined to confirm reports that he will move to Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe and he has downplayed the idea that his imminent arrival in the WorldTour is linked to Remco Evenepoel's future.
Sven Vanthourenhout has declined to confirm reports that he will join Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe on August 1, and the former Belgian national coach has also insisted that his move to a new team is “not connected” to transfer speculation surrounding Remco Evenepoel.
Last week, Vanthourenhout indicated that he had agreed terms to join the staff of a WorldTour team, with Belgian media reporting that the squad in question was Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe.
Although Evenepoel has a year left on his existing contract with Soudal-QuickStep, he has again been heavily linked with a possible move to Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe.
Speaking on Sporza’s ‘Vive Le Vélo’ show on Friday evening, Vanthourenhout played a straight bat when asked if he could confirm reports of his role at Red Bull.
“I saw that news too. I had already said that I had a job in mind and would communicate about it in due time. I stand by that,” Vanthourenhout said.
“If you're competing at the highest level, it's up to others to communicate about these kinds of things. They'll do it.”
Red Bull have yet to announce Vanthourenhout’s arrival, but Het Laatste Nieuws has reported that he will work alongside the team’s head sports director Rolf Aldag.
Speculation regarding Evenepoel’s future has gathered pace since the start of the Tour de France. Daniel Benson has reported a deal to move to Red Bull has “never been closer” to getting over the line. Het Laatste Nieuws has noted, however, that Vanthourenhout’s arrival at Red Bull has been negotiated separately to Evenepoel’s potential move.
“I've been thinking about my future for months, and Remco will be doing the same. We've had some fun and wonderful experiences, but we're certainly not connected,” Vanthourenhout said.
“We appreciate and respect each other, but these things are very different. We had fantastic times with the national team, so I look back on my time with Remco fondly anyway.”
Former Soudal-QuickStep manager Patrick Lefevere discussed Red Bull’s interest in his weekly column for Het Nieuwsblad, noting that Ralph Denk’s team has been persistent in making overtures to Evenepoel over the years.
“Leave or stay? Honestly: I don't know,” Lefevere wrote. “I only know the context: Bora manager Ralph Denk has been trying to lure Remco around for four years. He made him an initial proposal back then that still stings my eyes. After that, it never stopped: Ineos Grenadiers, at one point even Lidl-Trek, I understand, and always Bora-Hansgrohe.”
Lefevere also noted that his successor Jurgen Foré was not compelled to accept a Red Bull’s offer to buy Evenepoel out of the final year of his contract.
“Remco has a contract until the end of 2026, while Specialized has another year left,” he wrote. “Also important: none of our sponsorship contracts will expire if Remco were to stop riding for the team. At Soudal, that clause was included in the first year, but it’s no longer there.”
