There will be no first highly anticipated season showdown at the AlUla Tour between Tim Merlier and Jonathan Milan. As he himself communicated during his team's media day, the Belgian sprinter from Soudal Quick-Step will have to skip the race in Saudi Arabia due to some knee problems that have slowed down his preparation in recent weeks.

"My participation in the AlUla Tour is out of the question," he told journalists present in Spain.

"I will start the season only when I feel ready and when my trainers give me the green light: at that point we will set a date. I don't know yet where I will debut in this 2026, it's too early, but I hope to be at my best for the classics," Merlier clarified before explaining how he contracted the problem.

"We don't know exactly how it came about, I only know that it all started shortly after the Boonen & Friends charity cyclocross event on November 29th, but I'm not blaming that, because I've always practiced cyclocross during the winter," the 2024 continental champion pointed out.

"At one point, when I started pedaling again, I developed problems in both knees, but I believe it was more of a compensation issue, so much so that it didn't last long. In the end, everything was sorted out with rest," Merlier commented, who, due to these difficulties, could not present himself in great condition at the first training camp of 2026.

"Naturally, I'm not yet at my best form and it's not easy to think about competing with guys who are ready to race. However, if things continue to follow the path they are on now, I can perfectly live with it, and in a few weeks, I won't worry about it anymore," Merlier confided hopefully, wishing to recover the lost training days to seriously target the main one-day races that will take place in the North in a few weeks.