Kind of dirty sprint by Wellens . But I guess he was ahead coming out of the corner.
The Cycling News forum is looking to add some volunteer moderators with Red Rick's recent retirement. If you're interested in helping keep our discussions on track, send a direct message to
In the meanwhile, please use the Report option if you see a post that doesn't fit within the forum rules.
Thanks!
It looks more like he was annoyed that Wellens was closing the door.
Jury taking a look at the images, winner is not decided yet.Wellens wins. Of course.
Valverde angry at the line tho, he was cut short in the sprint.
At the beginning of the images there is a right bend so pretty logical that he moves to the left of the road. Indeed not very clear how much further he moved after that. At first glance it doesn't look out of the ordinary.Perhaps, but it's difficult to see how much space there was. He clearly moved to the left at the start of the sprint, but I'm not sure he really closed Bala during the final meters.
Indeed. It was Valverde's responsibility to get the space needed, e.g. either getting on the other side of Wellens or getting ahead of him before the bend.At the beginning of the images there is a right bend so pretty logical that he moves to the left of the road. Indeed not very clear how much further he moved after that. At first glance it doesn't look out of the ordinary.
Wellens his first win of the season in preseason as per usual.
And Felix Gall finished 10th, nice!Dan Hoole 11th in a tough race.
So the big man can climb even at pro level.
It's like getting kicked out of the house but still allowed to sleep in the garage until you find a place.How can he get his first win of the season in the preseason?
Three races of Mallorca Challenge done: one win for the strongest team of the peloton (UAE), two wins for weaker WT teams (Wanty, Lotto Soudal). UAE‘s win certainly was not a surprise, Wanty and Lotto were surprises.
Good for Wanty and Lotto Soudal: these early wins take away some pressure. These teams already have had seasons when the first win didn‘t arrive before April or May.
And in 2020 the season lasted 4 months and he took all his victories in the 4th month!He has won Vuelta stages, Giro stages, Eneco Tour twice, Tour de Pologne, Montreal. As far as I know those races were never in the first 3 months of the year. Underrated palmares.
Wellens has only 1 win in March over his career, a stage win in Paris-Nice in 2016.
Dan Hoole 11th in a tough race.
So the big man can climb even at pro level.
That's because he's resting from his february dominanceWellens has only 1 win in March over his career, a stage win in Paris-Nice in 2016.
He's relatively at his best the time of the year when fewer are.
I think the race and not least the finale is way too hard for Ghirmay. He's more of a sprinter than a puncheur I think.This one today. Curious if someone like Girmay can battle it out with with the likes of Valverde, Wellens, ...
Around 2,5 kilometres at 8,4 % will probably be too hard though. Think McNulty has a good chance again.
Today two scenarios are imaginable.I think the race and not least the finale is way too hard for Ghirmay. He's more of a sprinter than a puncheur I think.
I actually think he climbs quite well and see him more as a Sagan type than a flat sprinter. In Innsbruck he was also dropped late in the race, and in Leuven he got on the podium. He's definitely more versatile than most sprinters.I think the race and not least the finale is way too hard for Ghirmay. He's more of a sprinter than a puncheur I think.