Sprinter ace Robbie McEwen says he won’t be jealous come July about Cadel Evans’ rising prominence on Silence-Lotto for the 2008 season.

With Evans bucking for the Tour de France overall, McEwen will take a back seat on the Belgian team where he’s enjoyed marquee status for the past decade en route to winning three green points jerseys.

“I know the team will want as much as possible the selection to help Cadel,” McEwen told Aussie daily The Age ahead of Tuesday’s start of the Tour Down Under. “I think what they want to do is not use the energy to defend the green jersey. But that’s fine with me. I know I can still win stages anyway and if you win enough, you can get the jersey.”

Evans has been on a steady trajectory at Lotto since joining the team in 2005, finishing eighth, fifth and second, respectively, in the past three editions.

During that run, McEwen was the star attraction, enjoying the backing of the squad as Evans steadily pushed higher in the Tour power charts. There was no doubt, however, who was the alpha male on the team’s pecking order as McEwen paid back that support with sprint victories and green jerseys.

McEwen once said that Evans was the ideal teammate for GC in that he could watch out for himself while the team worked for him in the sprints.

That’s due to change as Evans will enter the 2008 Tour as one of the top contenders to win the maillot jaune.