The 30-year-old Frenchman was our best finisher.
A total of fifteen climbs, the last of which featuring just 20 kilometers from the line, awaited the riders Saturday as they lined out at the start of the Super 8 Classic. In what was the second of the third Belgian races scheduled at the end of this week, Soudal Quick-Step came with a strong squad that included Florian Sénéchal, winner here two years ago.
The up-and-down 203.6km course and its short but sharp hills favoured the attackers, and after the original three-man breakaway was reabsorbed, the pre-race favourites began showing their intentions. A handful of riders got a gap with 70 kilometers to go, but they too were brought back by the teams hoping to have a sprint at the end of the day.
This didn’t happen, because some 40 kilometers from the finish six men rode clear and built a one-minute advantage which the chasers could reduce to 15 seconds by the time the race finished. Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Deceuninck) took the victory, while Sénéchal – who came home with the group behind – concluded in ninth place for his best result of the season on a one-day race.
Photo credit: ©Luc Claessen / Getty Images
