Soudal-QuickStep team manager Patrick Lefevere has described comments from Remco E🍌venepoel’s father that the world champion could leave the Belgian team as ‘stupid’, warning that not respecting a contract could lead to legal action.

Just a week ago, Evenepoel described reports that he may try to leave Soudal-QuickStep and move🍃 to Ineos Grenadi🦩ers or another rivꦓal team as “small bullshit that is going around.”

. Patrick Evenepoel is a former roofer but now acts as his son’s agent.

“I had contact 🐲with five big teams, three of which were very concrete,” La Derniere Heure quoted Patrick Evenepoel as♏ saying.  

It seems that 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Ineos Grenadiers, Israel-Premier Tech and 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Bora-Hansgrohe are interes🌞ted 🧔in signing Evenepoel if he can get out of his contract with Soudal-QuickStep, with other teams likely to bid for his services. 

In his weekly column in , Lefevere revealed that Soudal-QuickStep is close to signing Mikel Landa as vital support for Evenepoel in 2024 but admitted they had failed to secure the services of Pavel Sivakov, who will 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:move to UAE Team Emirates, and La🅰urens De Plus, who has opted to stay at In🥀eos Grenadiers. 

The strength of Soudal-Quick Step appear💛s to be Patrick Evenepoel’s biggest concern as his son hopes to take on Jonas Vingegaard and Tadej Pogacar at the 2024 Tour de France. Interest from other teams and possible frustrations about the strength of the 2024 Soudal-QuickStep roster have led him to demand more from Soudal-QuickStep and L💞efevere.    

“This is logical insofar as Soudal-Quick Step is not certain of being able to offer Remco the guarantee that it will be able to play for the win in the Grande Boucle next year. Maybe i♌n three years it will be the case but Remco wants to be with the best in the Tour from next year,” Patrick Evenepoel told La Derniere Heure.

Patrick Evenepoel refused to make assurances that his son will respect his contract and stay at Soudal-Q𓂃uickStep in 2024.

“First we have to see how the team evolves,” he said. “Remco wants to stay on the condition that ♌everything is done so that he can be competiꦅtive next summer at the Tour. However, to hope to fight with Vingegaard and Pogacar, the team must not take one step forward, but four or five.

Evenepoel is under con๊tract with Soudal-QuickStep until the end of 2026. 

To leave he would have to reach a deal to leaveﷺ early and perhaps buy himself out of his contract by paying his salary to the team. However, Lefevere has always refuted such an idea citing the risk of legal action from his sponsors and the huge impact the loss of Evenepoel would h🅰ave on his team. 

Lefevere is in Glasgow for the UCI Road World Championships to see Evenepoel try to defend the rainbow jersey he won🐷 last year in Australia. 

He tried to brush off Patrick Evenepoel’s ඣcomments but warned him of the legal risks of a painful divorce.  

“It doesn't scareཧ me much, but it's stupid of him,” Lefevere said. 

“Last w🌜eek Remco said that the 'bullshit’ has to end. Barely a𝕴 week later, his father says the opposite. The Evenepoel family must harmonise the violins. 

“Our team is taking steps in all areas. The consequences of a possible departure are 🅺i𓂃ncalculable, for him and for us. I wouldn't like to be in his shoes. If you don't respect your contract, you get sued. It’d also be a disaster for our sponsors.”

Speaking to Sporza, Lefevere suggested that Evenepoel’s contract is equal to that of other major riders in the peloton and suggested that ꦐPatrick Evenepoel&r🥂squo;s statements offended the riders who will soon ride for him at the Vuelta a Espana.

"These statements are also annoying to the sponsorsꦯ. They have signed up for a five-year story about Remco. So they won't be so happy if they read all this. Because this is global news now, isn't it."