GP Denain came down to a reduced sprint.
Northern France welcomed the peloton, three weeks before the legendary Paris-Roubaix, for the Grand Prix de Denain. A total of 23 kilometers of cobbles made up for a lively race from the start, when a breakaway rode clear, putting pressure on the peloton.
The chasers, which included the five Soudal Quick-Step riders, ramped up the speed to reduce the gap to the leaders, who were brought back before the race got split on one of the many cobblestone segments of the race with more than 50 kilometers to go.
Eight men took off and pushed hard to maintain their margin over the chasers, which allowed them to fight for victory in Denain, where Matthew Brennan (Visma-Lease a Bike) prevailed, a couple of minutes ahead of the bunch that included Luke Lamperti, third in Nokere Koerse on Wednesday.
Photo credit: ©Luc Claessen / Getty Images
