Patrick Lefevere has broken his silence on Remco Evenepoel's transfer from Soudal-QuickStep to Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe, admitting that Evenepoel is right to "earn few million more somewhere" and that Soudal can no longer compete with the big-budget super teams.
Lefevere is no longer in charge at Soudal and revealed he is tied by a non-disclosure agreement. He posted a message on Instagram when Evenepoel's transfer was confirmed on August 5 saying he was not allowed to speak about transfers but opened up and shared some personal thoughts in his regular column in Flemish newspaper Nieuwsblad.
"I can't pretend nothing happened with Remco this week, of course, but I repeat: contractually, I can't say much about it," Lefevere wrote.
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"When I sold my shares in the team, I also signed a non-disclosure agreement, which means I'm not allowed to work for another team for a certain period, but also that what happens within the team must remain confidential.
Which doesn't mean I can't say what I think about Remco's departure. In short: no hard feelings. That's life. The guy is 25 years old, and if he can earn a few million more somewhere, he should. As far as I'm concerned, he's not staying. Budget-wise, we can no longer compete with the UAE and Red Bulls of this world.
Lefevere's relationship with Evenepoel became strained over time before some kind of reconciliation more recently. When Lefevere posted his initial message about Evenepoel, his father and agent Patrick Evenepoel replied: "Thkx for all Boss ! We know, what we know…"
Lefevere's time as the Soudal team manager ended in December 2024 but he knew what was happening with Evenepoel after trying to stop rival teams, including Red Bull and Ineos Grenadiers, for the last four years.
"Of course, I was aware of what was going to happen. The news didn't surprise me. It's like a relationship: when it's over, it's over. You just feel it," Lefevere wrote in his column.
"Would this have happened with me still leading the team? It would be very arrogant to say no.
"This was already happening when I was still in charge. There was always interest in Remco, but we were always able to reassure him. It wasn't until he won the Vuelta a España and became world champion in Wollongong that they really started chasing him. Remco said a few times that he would never leave us. People remember that, but I forgive him; you say something like that in an emotional moment.
"Do you have to conclude then that we've become a mid-table team? Budget-wise, we were never truly top-tier. Through hard work, we performed miracles for years with the budget we had. But at a certain point, you feel you have to let go."
Soudal-QuickStep appear to be rebuilding their Classics squad after losing Evenepoel and any hope of competing for overall victory in Grand Tours. They have already confirmed the arrival of Jasper Styven and Dylan van Baarle, who will help develop young talents like Paul Magnier.
Lefevere acknowledged that it is more economical to develop riders via their own team development team but admitted they no longer have the biggest and best classics riders on their roster and may never be fully competitive in Grand Tours as with Evenepoel.
"The question we have to ask ourselves now: what's next for Soudal Quick-Step? Jurgen Foré is convinced we can get back to what we used to be and that includes the Grand Tours," Lefevere wrote.
"If we can't get them elsewhere, we have to try to train them ourselves, which we've been doing for a long time, by the way. The list of riders who came out of our Klein Constantia development team is long: Julian Alaphilippe, Enric Mas, Max Schachmann… We're quite proud of that. And it costs less than signing a rider.
"Although I'm also realistic: we're probably not going to train someone who will end up on the final podium of the Tour de France. I'd like to think I'm wrong, but I fear it."
Cyclingnews will cover all of the 2026 cycling transfers from around the men's and women's pelotons with news, analysis, and an updated transfer index, to make sure you don't miss a thing this transfer season.
