Kévin Vauquelin (Arkéa-B&B Hotels): “This performance is going to be of great help”

April 23 ^rd 2025 - 17:25

“It has been an exceptional day. There was a great field at the startline. Delivering a second place again is a confirmation of what I did last year, and that is the main takeaway for me. These last few weeks have not been easy for me from a mental perspective. Even today I was struggling on the bike, yet I kept pushing because I didn’t want to have any regrets. This performance is going to be of great help. Landing a great result is difficult, but landing a second one is even more difficult because you ask yourself a lot of questions in the meantime. There have been very hard moments. My loved ones, my teammates and the staff of my team are the ones who cope with all my struggles and my doubts. Today’s performance is a reward for all of us.”

“I tried to approach the final climb on the wheel of the best riders. I knew that I didn’t want to unleash my effort too early, because I could overcook myself like last year. When Ben Healy and Remco Evenepoel started to lose ground, I took off. I didn’t look back for a single second, but I was afraid to get overtaken.”

“This is a very important result for Arkéa-B&B Hotels, as it shows we can be present in WorldTour races. The teamwork today has been excellent, with Simon [Guglielmi] up front and Raúl García Pierna positioning me ahead of the final climb. Without them, I wouldn’t be here. As for Sunday, Liège-Bastogne-Liège is a completely different race - longer, more demanding. I need not to feel any complex in order to do my best and not have any regrets at the finish.”