Soudal Quick-Step Powers to Team Time Trial Victory

Second consecutive win for The Wolfpack, who come out on top in the team time trial

Our squad’s love affair with this year’s UAE Tour continued Tuesday afternoon, when Josef Cerny, Remco Evenepoel, Tim Merlier, Mauro Schmid, Pieter Serry, Bert Van Lerberghe and Louis Vervaeke rode the team time trial of their lives around the Khalifa Port and brought home a second success in the space of just twenty-four hours.

As the last squad to roll down the ramp, Soudal Quick-Step had a good start and immediately found their rhythm, putting together a nice ride in the first part of the 17.3km flat stage against the clock and coming through the split just ten seconds off the pace. In the second half of the out-and-back course, Evenepoel and his teammates moved into a completely different gear, driving it hard and making up time.

With one kilometer to go, it became clear that it would be another tight finish at the UAE Tour for the second day running, and in the end, it was our squad who prevailed by a single second, stopping the clock in 18:17 after averaging an incredible 56.77km/h – a remarkable speed given the two long sections where they had to overcome a strong headwind.

“To do a good team time trial was our goal, but we didn’t dare dream about winning the whole thing. It wasn’t easy today: headwind, tailwind, headwind, tailwind, some tricky corners as well, but we kept our composure and followed our plan. We began speeding up in the headwind and saved some energy in the tailwind, going full gas in the second part of the stage. I did two very long pulls in the final kilometers, and at one point we were riding at over 70km/h. The guys were incredible, they went all out, we kept the pace and didn’t have any fluctuations in our speed. It’s my first TTT win and it feels special, it’s a moment from which we take a lot of confidence”, a beaming Remco said before the podium ceremony.

2023 UAE Tour Stage 2 Top 10

1  Soudal - Quick Step 18.17 0.00 56.773
2  EF Education-EasyPost 18.18 0.01 56.721
3  INEOS Grenadiers 18.20 0.03 56.618
4  Bahrain - Victorious 18.21 0.04 56.567
5  Team Jayco AlUla 18.22 0.05 56.515
6  Team DSM 18.27 0.10 56.260
7  BORA - hansgrohe 18.32 0.15 56.007
8  UAE Team Emirates 18.33 0.16 55.957
9  Astana Qazaqstan Team 18.34 0.17 55.907
10  Trek - Segafredo 18.36 0.19 55.806

2023 UAE Tour GC after Stage 2

1  PLAPP Luke INEOS Grenadiers 3:35:50
2  EVENEPOEL Remco Soudal - Quick Step ,,
3  ARNDT Nikias Bahrain - Victorious 0:03
4  BILBAO Pello Bahrain - Victorious 0:04
5  CAVENDISH Mark Astana Qazaqstan Team 0:15
6  BOL Cees Astana Qazaqstan Team 0:21
7  KOOIJ Olav Jumbo-Visma 0:23
8  VAN LERBERGHE Bert Soudal - Quick Step 0:29
9  MERLIER Tim Soudal - Quick Step 0:30
10  DRIZNERS Jarrad Lotto Dstny 0:50