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Stephen Farrand

'I can't say what exactly the problem was' - Knee injury delays Tim Merlier's 2026 season debut

Tim Merlier Soudal QuickStep BELGA MAG SoudalQuickStep AlUla Tour

L-R, French Paul Magnier of Soudal Quick-Step, Belgian Tim Merlier of Soudal Quick-Step and Belgian Yves Lampaert of Soudal Quick-Step pictured during the team presentation of the Soudal Quick-Step cycling team in Calpe, Spain, Thursday 08 January 2026.BELGA PHOTO JOMA GARCIA (Photo by JOMA GARCIA / BELGA MAG / Belga via AFP).

Tim Merlier is expected to step up, win big again in 2026, and help fill the gap left by Remco Evenepoel's transfer away from Soudal-QuickStep. However, the Belgian sprinter's winter has been disrupted by a knee injury, which has delayed his season debut.

Merlier won 16 races in 2025, racing between late January and mid-October but his knee problem means he will miss this year's AlUla Tour despite being announced by race organisers. The Saudi race is scheduled for January 27-31 and offers several sprint opportunities. Merlier was expected to clash with Jonathan Milan (Lidl-Trek) for the first time in 2026, but that clash has now been delayed.

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