
Unlike what happened on Saturday during the first stage of the Tour de France, Remco Evenepoel passed the second stage without problems and this makes him serene. The rivals, Tadej Pogacar and Jonas Vingegaard, gained some bonus seconds, but the two-time Olympic champion does not think this could be important or compromise the general classification.
Remco arrived in Boulogne-sur-Mer with the favorites and saw an end of the day that can be considered positive overall.
"It was exactly the stage we hoped for – he said outside the team bus -. I was up front and then it became more difficult for me, because there were numerically superior teams. In the end, I focused on arriving safe and sound and I succeeded, and this for me is a positive end of the day".
Evenepoel finished seventeenth, a positive result considering what happened on the first day, when he crossed the finish line 39 seconds behind.
The Soudal Quick-Step captain also intended to do something and try some attacks yesterday, but in his mind he convinced himself that he could wait and let others go forward. "I would have liked to try to do something, but I had the feeling that in the end it would not have been so useful. Especially because of Visma-Lease a Bike, which was ahead with two men. Then there was also van der Poel who wanted to win the stage and I am happy for him that he managed to do it".
Compared to Saturday, the result was better for Evenepoel and even if he lost a few seconds due to bonuses, he is not making a drama out of it: "My result is not bad and my sensations were good. If you are among the first 5 in curves like today's, then you have done well and cannot complain. My positioning was also quite good, everything was a bit more precise compared to Saturday. I do not need to increase my confidence in myself, because I never lost it. I wanted to race up front and I succeeded. The most important thing was to arrive with the first group and stay on my feet. I did not lose time, bonuses aside".
The first weekend of the Grande Boucle is over and the first conclusions can be drawn, which in the Soudal-Quick Step house are positive.
"We know that our opponents are giving their all, but we are getting more and more into the race and tomorrow will be another important day for our team".
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