Remco Evenepoel: The wildcard set to shake up Tadej Pogacar v Mathieu van der Poel showdown at 2026 Tour of Flanders

For two years, cycling's biggest one-day races have belonged to Tadej Pogacar and Mathieu van der Poel. But could that be set to sensationally change on Sunday? Remco Evenepoel's late call to race the Tour of Flanders adds an unpredictable new dimension as he looks to snap Pogacar and Van der Poel's four-year hold on the cobbled Monument. So can he actually pull it off?

More than two years have passed since anyone not named Tadej Pogacar or Mathieu van der Poel has won a men's Monument, the most brutal and prestigious one-day races on the calendar.

Between them, Pogacar (six) and Van der Poel (four) have swept the last 10, most recently with the Slovenian finally conquering Milano-Sanremo.

On Sunday, they return to familiar territory at the Tour of Flanders - live on TNT Sports and HBO Max - where they have split the last four editions on the Belgian cobbles.

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But this time, there is a wildcard. A rider with both climbing class and one-day punch: Remco Evenepoel.

'You can never rule Evenepoel out' - Contador

After weeks of team denials and conflicting reports, Evenepoel (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) finally confirmed on Wednesday that he will race Flanders.

His early season programme was built around another tilt at the Tour de France, but a bruising defeat to Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike) at the Volta a Catalunya exposed his stage‑race credentials. His frustration with the Dane's lack of cooperation earlier in the race did not help either.

Evenepoel gives update after crash and aims subtle dig at Vingegaard

Video credit: TNT Sports

Perhaps craving the chaos of one‑day racing on the cobblestones, Evenepoel has now pivoted to Flanders, hoping to emulate Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates-XRG), who ripped up the script as a GC rider to win in 2023 and 2025.

Among the current peloton, Evenepoel trails only Pogacar (11) and Van der Poel (eight) in Monument wins. Unfortunately, his tally sits at just two, both at Liege-Bastogne-Liege, and he has never tackled a major race on the cobbles.

"It’s great news for the cycling world," said two-time Tour de France champion and TNT Sports expert Alberto Contador.

"I think it’s also a good decision from Remco. Maybe he doesn’t have the experience some of the other riders have on the cobbles, but he is very talented, has a lot of potential, and on a race like the Tour of Flanders, if Remco Evenepoel is on the start line, you can never rule him out for victory."

To win on Sunday, he must topple Van der Poel (Alpecin-Premier Tech) on his terrain and stick to Pogacar on the climbs. It would surely be the defining victory of his career - even eclipsing his Olympic double at the Paris 2024 Games.

'Thanks to Tadej Pogacar'

While Eddy Merckx and Pogacar, the two most decorated riders in men's history, boast palmares overflowing with Monuments and Tours de France, most GC riders of the modern era have avoided the Classics to protect their Grand Tour ambitions.

Allan Peiper, strategic advisor at Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe, believes Pogacar's refusal to choose between stage races and Classics has changed the sport - and may inspire others to follow suit.

"Thankfully, the mentality of GC riders in the last 20-30 years, of not riding the Classics, has changed thanks to Tadej Pogacar," Peiper told TNT Sports earlier this season.

"He's a Tour de France winner riding Paris-Roubaix and Ronde van Vlaanderen [Tour of Flanders] - and he's won the Ronde. That makes the other GC riders think 'well, if he can do it, I could also do it.'

"That's a great thing for cycling. We want to see the best riders in the best races."

So could Evenepoel win Flanders one day?

"Potentially, yes," said Peiper. "I said the same thing about Tadej two years ago before he won. Flanders is a very nervous race, positioning is everything. It's different to riding a Grand Tour or Liege-Bastogne-Liege, so there are a lot of ifs.

"But he has the mental qualities and the headspace to do it. I think with his ability to climb, knowing the area, and being Belgian, he could do a really great result."

How to watch the 2026 Tour of Flanders

Watch the Tour of Flanders men's race on Sunday, April 5 from 08:30 UK time on TNT Sports 3 and HBO Max.

Coverage of the women's race starts at 14:00 on TNT Sports 4 and HBO Max.

TNT Sports is available across all major TV platforms, offering a line-up of up to four TV channels (TNT Sports 1, TNT Sports 2, TNT Sports 3, TNT Sports 4), and up to six digital or red-button channels (TNT Sports 5 to 10), and TNT Sports Ultimate plus TNT Sports Box Office HD.

You can subscribe to TNT Sports through HBO Max, BT, EE, Sky, and Virgin Media.

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