Although a year ago Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl Team won the UCI ranking, and this season was only 5th, it seems that this year’s campaign has been one of the best for the formation of Patrick Lefevere. The Belgian team won its first Grand Tour in Grand Tour history.

You may have different opinions about Patrick Lefevere – he is eccentric, often makes very controversial decisions, constantly complains about financial problems in the media and sometimes speaks in a way that is difficult to accept. At the same time, the 67-year-old Belgian has to be given one thing – the team he leads is one of the best in the world and we’re talking about continuity, not successful seasons.

The Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl Team cyclists have won 47 victories in club colors this year, and as a national team they have won two jerseys – the world champion by Remco Evenepoel and the best rider in Europe, which is now held by Fabio Jakobsen. Add the monument, the stages of all the Grand Tours and the coveted general classification of one of them, which illustrates one thing well: this season has been perfect for this team.

Most important achievements chronologically:
🇪🇸3 stages won, point and young class and 2nd place in general class Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana (2nd Pro)
🇬🇧Winner in points and 2nd overall in the Tour de la Provence (2nd Pro)
🇴🇲2 stage wins, 2nd place overall in the Tour of Oman (2nd Pro)
🇵🇹3 stages won, triumphs in general, point and youth class Volta ao Algarve em Bicicleta (2nd Pro)
🇦🇪 A victory on an episode of the UAE Tour
🇮🇹3. place in Strade Bianche
🇬🇧 Paris-Nice stage won
🇮🇹Winner in Milan-Turin (1.Pro)
🇮🇹2 triumphs in the Settimana Internazionale Coppi and Bartali sections (2.1)
🇪🇸2 stages of Volta Ciclista a Catalunya won
🇪🇸 Stage victory in the youth class and 4th overall in Itzulia Pays Basque
🇧🇪 Triumph in Liège-Bastogne-Liège
🇭🇺2 stages won and points class of the Tour of Hungary (2.1)
🇮🇹 Win the stage of the Giro d’Italia
🇳🇴 Triumph in general and youth class and in 3 episodes of the Tour of Norway (2.Pro)
🇧🇪 Overall winner and 2nd stage of the Baloise Belgium Tour (2nd Pro)
🇨🇭Win an episode of the Tour de Suisse
🇬🇧2 victories in the stages of the Tour de France
🇧🇪Victories of episode 2 in Ethias-Tour de Wallonie (2.Pro)
Triumph in Donostia San Sebastian Klasikoa
🇩🇪The European Championship
🇪🇸 General and Youth Classification and 2 stages of La Vuelta ciclista a España
🇸🇰2 stages, double in the general classification, points class and young Okolo Slovenska (2.1)
🇧🇪Triumph in Kampioenschap van Vlaanderen (1.1)
🇦🇺World Championship
🇮🇹Winning in Coppa Bernocchi – GP BPM (1.Pro)

Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl Team key drivers for the 2022 season:
🇧🇪Remco Evenepoel
One, unique, great and wonderful. On the 22-year-old Belgium, one could start and end the analysis of the successes of this team, this player had such a large percentage of the success of the whole team. Winning La Vuelta ciclista a España, world championship and bronze in the individual time trial, victories in Liège-Bastogne-Liège, Donostia San Sebastian Klasikoa, Tour of Norway, Volta ao Algarve em Bicicleta… You could thus count hours. It was the season of the god – god of cycling. Where is the limit of this youth?

🇳🇱Fabio Jakobsen
Some time ago, with my editorial colleagues, I wondered what else the 26-year-old should do to stop judging him by the prism of what he gave after the accident in Katowice. If anyone wasn’t convinced this season by the Dutchman that he is now simply one of the best sprinters in the world, I don’t know what Fabio should do. 13 victories in UCI events, stage of the Tour de France, European championship. The only thing missing is a telemark landing for the size of Letalnica’s hill, but perhaps the 26-year-old wouldn’t leave the ground anymore. Patrick Lefevere has a sprint star in his “stable”, thanks to which he can resign from the services of Mark Cavendish without any stress. The successor may not break records, but its consistency is remarkable.

🇨🇭Mauro Schmid
When, at 21, he won the Giro d’Italia stage a year ago, he was hailed as the biggest surprise of the race. However, it was not a title that brought great pride, but simply a sign that this episode ended in such a surprising way. The following season, however, showed the Swiss to be a first-water talent, and this year’s accomplishments include, among other things, an overall victory in the Baloise Belgium Tour, the world team time trial championship. or good performances in other events. Several Quick-Step stars have faded this year, and the Swiss have quietly done their job.

🇮🇲Mark Cavendish
The 37-year-old Briton faced with the successes of Fabio Jakobsen had to hide a bit in the shadow of a Dutchman who is more than a decade younger, but that doesn’t mean he was weak. He won the Giro d’Italia stage, he was the best in Milan-Turin. In total, he has won 5 times this year and he can look to the future with optimism, even if he will play for another team.

The biggest positive surprises:
Apart from the fact that Remco Evenepoel has closed the murders of critics familiarly, the already mentioned Mauro Schmid has made pleasant progress this year. Mauri Vansevenant has also managed to stabilize his form, and youngsters Ethan Vernon and Ilan Van Wilder are slowly pushing their careers forward.

Biggest disappointments:
The full text of the team’s praise is behind us, so it’s time for a spoonful of tar in a barrel of honey. No less than a dozen cyclists have scored a clean descent this season. While, for example, Julian Alaphilippe has a reason for this in the form of accidents, specialists in the cobbled classics should just be ashamed. What was the hallmark of Patrick Lefevere’s team this year had completely failed, and in the spring Quick-Step was almost non-existent, and certainly not like we were used to.

Kasper Asgreen, Florian Sénéchal, Yves Lampert, Zdeněk Štybar, Davide Ballerini and Rémi Cavagna did not mention their best results this year, and Fausto Masnada, Mattia Cattaneo and Mikkel Frølich Honoré, with other specializations, also scored a big hole. Each of them is lucky that Remco Evenepoel and the sprinters have made us forget their “exploits” a little, otherwise instead of rubbing at 10/10 we would have had a very low mark under the text.

Summary:
Yes, it was supposed to be tense, at first it was even listed under this article, but the Quick-Step spring reminder made it impossible to write it at the end of the text in good conscience. Before Patrick Lefever, it’s time for serious decisions – Remco Evenepoel certainly needs to strengthen his environment, that is to say simply better midfielders, and these can be tempted by the money saved on cyclists who are not able to fight their rivals to the extent that could be expected.

On the other hand, the northern classics are what this team is famous for, and can you just give up the fight? It would certainly be a great detriment for many races, because Quick-Step is a team whose DNA has always been to add color to the competition long before the finish line. However, there is no need to look to the future – that’s what we will do when announcing the next season, in the meantime we must congratulate Remco Evenepoel and a company close to ideal in terms of final results in 2022.

Assessing the potential of the Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl Team z Naszosowa announces 2022 season: 9.5 / 10
The final score of this team for the 2022 season: 9.75/10