Remco Evenepoel goes clear on La Redoute, Tom Pidcock gives chase and will manage to get onto his back wheel but he won’t last long. From here on Evenepoel’s biggest rivals were the rain and the cold but he stayed away to take a prestigious second consecutive win in Liège.
Pogačar. Need you read more? This blog doesn’t sell clicks so that’s up to you but he’s not invincible and the prospect of the best rider in the world right now versus the world champion this Sunday is enticing.
Also this year’s route has an added “hidden” climb, plus there’s all the usual information like weather and the TV timings below too.
After two years of bother the organisers promise they’ve upgraded the photofinish equipment so there’ll be no doubting the winner. Perhaps they won’t need all this given Tadej Pogačar is riding? It’s a tough course where he’ll find plenty of rivals.
The Zaaf team races on, despite unpaid wages. Reports in the newspaper AS say that payments will be made to riders but we’ll see. It’s problematic for the riders here but also shows the gap between the World Tour and the rest where the top teams enjoy regulatory protection and oversight while the lesser ones have a much wilder time and this is much more pronounced for the women.
Mathieu van der Poel leaves the Carrefour de l’Arbre pavé sector solo while arch-rival Wout van Aert is forced to stop because of a puncture. This was the final, decisive moment that gave Van der Poel the win but came after a series of events that worked in his favour to the detriment of Van Aert.
Are you sitting comfortably? A traditional Paris-Roubaix awaits, after pandemic and electoral postponements, the race finally back to its traditional slot, and Easter Sunday one too. To add to the tradition, at least this century, it’ll be dry too.
Something’s changed in pro cycling since 2020. For years the most prolific winners were always the sprinters, now five other riders, led by Tadej Pogačar, are taking the spoils.
So what do you do when you’re a big favourite to win but the two other riders everyone is tipping are bound to out-sprint you? Make them suffer on every uphill stretch and turn final climb into a tortuous effort. Tadej Pogačar did just that, launching on many climbs before making his final move on the Oude Kwaremont to go away solo. This kept Mads Pedersen and Mathieu van der Poel at bay so all he had to worry about was holding on for the finish. Easy to say, hard to do. This was an overwinning by Pogačar.
Welcome to Flanders where millions this Sunday will be hoping for home win from Wout van Aert but he’s got to deal with Mathieu van der Poel, Tadej Pogačar, the rest of the field, the course and forecast crosswinds.
The spring classics are a big part of the season, teams can hire specialists there and some riders live for this brief part of the season. It’s wonderful sport but it can lack commercial sense… which is why it’s wonderful.