Breakaway makes it after a fast day in the saddle.
On paper, the fast men had their chance Saturday afternoon, but as everyone expected, the 16th Flandrien 0.0 Classic proved too demanding for them, despite an elevation gain of just 1700 meters. It was the up-and-down course and the numerous hills that forced the peloton to constantly change the rhythm that ended up pouring lead into the sprinters’ legs.
A strong breakaway formed and applied quite a lot of pressure on the bunch. Sensing the race was slipping from their hands, a dozen or so riders - including Pascal Eenkhoorn - accelerated from the peloton in the hope of joining the front group, but despite their best efforts, they couldn’t get close enough to the leaders and got reeled in by the field.
Shortly after, the peloton switched their attention to bringing the attackers back, only to come up short. The escapees made it for just a couple of seconds and Henrik Pedersen (Uno-X Mobility) took the win in Haacht, where Tim Merlier concluded as the first Soudal Quick-Step rider home.
Photo credit: ©Rhode Van Elsen / Getty Images
