Cycling
Evenepoel and Lipowitz lead Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe’s Tour challenge
Co-led by Belgian superstar Remco Evenepoel and German powerhouse Florian Lipowitz, the team is targeting the top spot in the biggest event of the year.
Red Bull – BORA – hansgrohe have unveiled their eight-rider squad for the 2026 Tour de France, with Remco Evenepoel and Florian Lipowitz sharing leadership responsibilities as the team targets the general classification.
The Belgian and German arrive in France with remarkably similar credentials. Both have won the White Jersey for the best young rider and finished third overall at the Tour de France in the past two editions, establishing themselves among the sport’s elite stage racers. Now, they will line up together at cycling’s biggest race for the first time as co-leaders.
The Tour is no longer won by an exceptional rider alone, but by an exceptional team
Their different strengths make for a formidable partnership. Evenepoel is one of the most explosive and versatile riders in the peloton, while Lipowitz has emerged as one of the most consistent performers in stage racing. Together, they give Red Bull – BORA – hansgrohe a level of tactical flexibility that few teams can match.
“The Tour is no longer won by an exceptional rider alone, but by an exceptional team,” said Zak Dempster, Chief of Sports at Red Bull – BORA – hansgrohe. “We believe we are bringing one of the most complete squads to the start. With Remco and Florian, we have two leaders who have already proven they can stand on the Tour podium. Their different strengths give us tactical options that could prove decisive.”
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Red Bull – BORA – hansgrohe announce 2026 Tour de France squad
Florian Lipowitz and Remco Evenepoel will both aim for the Yellow Jersey
© Maximilian Fries/Red Bull Content Pool
Red Bull – BORA – hansgrohe announced their Tour de France 2026 team ahead of the Grand Départ in Barcelona on July 4. For the German WorldTeam, it marks a 13th appearance at cycling’s most prestigious race as the team looks to build on a decade of success at the Tour.
The eight-rider Red Bull – BORA – hansgrohe line-up for the 2026 Tour de France is:
- Remco Evenepoel
- Florian Lipowitz
- Jai Hindley
- Maxim Van Gils
- Mattia Cattaneo
- Jan Tratnik
- Nico Denz
- Tim van Dijke
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Remco Evenepoel and Florian Lipowitz spearhead GC ambitions
Lipowitz is introverted, while Evenepoel thrives in the spotlight
© Maximilian Fries/Red Bull Content Pool
Red Bull - BORA - Hansgrohe’s GC strategy at the Tour de France is a two-pronged attack, led by two of road cycling’s most promising talents in Evenepoel and Lipowitz.
Evenepoel joined Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe during the 2025/26 off-season and was signed with the Tour de France in mind. The 26-year-old Belgian has Grand Tour-winning experience (2022’s La Vuelta), and has shown he can perform on the sport’s biggest stages - claiming the road race and time trial golds at Paris 2024, as well as four world championships (one in road, three in time trial). The 2026 edition will be his third start at the Tour, and he will be out to make amends after he was forced to abandon last year’s race on Stage 14 through illness.
The Belgian isn't the team's only GC hope, with German talent Florian Lipowitz coming to the fore in 2025 at his first Tour de France. Although initially riding in support of Primož Roglič, the debutant was clearly the stronger of the two as the race entered the final week, and he showed experience and abilities beyond his years to finish third behind Tadej Pogačar and Jonas Vingegaard, while also winning the team's first-ever white jersey for the best young rider. The 25-year-old has had an impressive run-in to the 2026 Tour, including a win at the Tour of Slovenia and second place at the Tour de Romandie behind Tadej Pogacar.
Although most teams pick one standout GC contender, Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe have already shown that having co-leaders can work in their favour. Jai Hindley and Guilio Pellizaari co-led the team at May’s Giro d’Italia, with Hindley finishing third behind Jonas Vingegaard and Felix Gall.
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Jai Hindley and Maxim Van Gils anchor the team's mountain support
Jay Hindley back on the Giro podium
© RCS Sports & Events / Red Bull Content Pool
To assist Evenepoel and Lipowitz’s GC bid, the team leaders need support when the race reaches the mountains – which will happen as early as the first week on the 2026 Tour’s route. Here, mountain domestiques – riders who specialise in climbing – will play a vital role in assisting the pair in a number of ways. If defending the yellow jersey, they can be used to chase down rival teams’ attacks and provide shelter and a wheel to follow on a climb; if on the attack, they can set a ferocious pace in an attempt to burn out other GC contenders’ mountain domestiques, leaving the competition on their own and exposed.
The mountain domestiques for Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe have a mix of experience that should serve Evenepoel and Lipowitz well on any of the seven mountain days. Jai Hindley knows what it takes to win a Grand Tour and the Australian starts his third Tour de France fresh from finishing third at the Giro d’Italia. The 30-year-old’s sole Tour stage win also came in the Pyrenees in 2023, so he'll be a useful ally when the race reaches the mountain range from Stage 3. Maxim Van Gils meanwhile returned to racing at Tour Auvergne - Rhône-Alpes, where he won a climb-heavy stage as part of the breakaway. This year will be the 26-year-old Belgian’s third Tour, and first Grand Tour for Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe since he signed for the 2025 season.
Maxim Van Gils has come back strongly from injury
© Twila Federica Muzzi/Red Bull Content Pool
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Experience and raw power in the engine room
The main focus for the team will be protecting Evenepoel and Lipowitz and their GC bid, and on the flat and rolling stages, this responsibility will fall to Jan Tratnik, Mattia Cattaneo, Nico Denz and Tim van Dijke.
Tratnik is an experienced hand and the 36-year-old will be the team’s road captain – distilling the instructions of the team management in the cut-and-thrust nature of professional road cycling, and ensuring that the team’s pacing and positioning is on point.
Red Bull – BORA – hansgrohe are ready for the Grand Départ in Barcelona
© Oriol Castello/Red Bull Content Pool
The 35-year-old Italian Cattaneo is another veteran of the peloton, and will start his 15th Grand Tour in Barcelona. In addition to his hard-earned experience, he’s also a time-trial specialist, which could help the team get off to a winning start in the opening team time trial around Barcelona.
German Denz starts his second Tour de France and the rouleur already has one Grand Tour in his legs this season, after supporting Hindley’s third-place finish at the Giro d’Italia. Something of a breakaway artist, he’ll be hoping to add a Tour de France stage win to his three Giro stages on a quieter day in the general classification battle.
Finally, Tim van Dijke is making his Tour de France debut, but the Dutch one-day specialist knows what it takes to compete across a three-week race, having finished two Grand Tours already in his career. A broken collarbone at an altitude camp means his preparation has been slightly disrupted, but he starts race ready and will be a critical cog in the Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe machine.