Paris-Roubaix 2026, one day monument, April 12

[aphronesis]

Oh ***.

 

[Mayomaniac]

I hold Paris-Roubaix slightly higher than the other Monuments on my estimation / valuation largely because it's not replicable by any other race on the calendar. There are other races on the calendar that ape what you can get from the four other Monuments, hell de Ronde has an entire sequence of races that use many of the same climbs in different orders that lead into it, with only the Koppenberg really being maintained as sacred to RVV. As for Liège, it comes at the end of a week of similarly-profiled hilly races in the same region; Sanremo is "just" a race for the durable sprinter with a few chances to get away in the last part of the course, its unique factor comes from the distance which is not really replicated anywhere on the calendar. Lombardia changes route like, every single year and so while I have a soft spot for it and it has its legendary sights, it doesn't have quite the same feeling of theatre when they reach particular landmarks as some of the other Monuments.

But there are no other races that truly replicate what Paris-Roubaix has to offer.

At the same time I feel like the UCI needs to enforce maximal tire width, mainly for the cobbled classics. Cause someone riding 35mm tires that blow up to 38mm on the rim as their front tire like Pogacar is trying to cheat the nature of this race, it lowers the skill cap needed and makes it easier for the lighter guys.

 

[Coppi-Bartali]

Maybe just the sting of losing his most sought prize, beaten in the sprint, in the legendary velodrome!

This was the one he wanted most. How can he even think about skipping next year if he's so obsessively hunting all five Monuments? But maybe not all in a single year anymore...

No. He said the same thing after winning San Remo.

 

[Libertine Seguros]

At the same time I feel like the UCI needs to enforce maximal tire width, mainly for the cobbled classics. Cause someone riding 35mm tires that blow up to 38mm on the rim as their front tire like Pogacar is trying to cheat the nature of this race, it lowers the skill cap needed and makes it easier for the lighter guys.

Also they need to police riding in the gutter better, there are so many rutted paths adjacent to the sectors now that we are seeing a lot of the cobbles simply being bypassed.

 

[Devil's Elbow]

At the same time I feel like the UCI needs to enforce maximal tire width, mainly for the cobbled classics. Cause someone riding 35mm tires that blow up to 38mm on the rim as their front tire like Pogacar is trying to cheat the nature of this race, it lowers the skill cap needed and makes it easier for the lighter guys.

On the other hand, it didn't seem to help his cornering whatsoever.

 

[Dazed and Confused]

Very good interview (Bissegger

 

[saunaking]

Bad team planning. Different pedals from his teammate? Why?

Im not ready to believe some commentator on this unless team cops to it

 

[onefortheroad]

No. He said the same thing after winning San Remo.

Maybe thinking he would win PR today.

 

[search]

Degenkolb didn't have a great day. Mechanical in Arenberg, then not strong enough to follow Mathieu back to the front. But he hopes to return one more time next year

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qpPLuEfG1BE

 

[tobydawq]

To be honest I got pretty fed up of that too, but I got more fed up of the constant dismissing of women's cycling as a whole because of her dominance, admittedly I would therefore defend her to the hilt against that.

Fair enough. I can see your points but I don't really know what you could have realistically hoped for in today's race if a Van Aert win over Pogi is also dismissed as something we've seen lots of times before. It's not like Aivaras Mikutis and Victor Vercouillie were going to be duking it out for the win.

 

[Potomac]

It was a great race in the end even though I wasn't a fan of all the randomness.

Does the top 10 seem random to you?
Pog, WVA, MvdP, Mads .... I think most everybody would have predicted them to finish top 10.
I could argue it's the same old faces once again, the opposite of randomness.

 

[saunaking]

Wout is free, passed it off to the women's team

 

[memyselfandI]

Watched this bit later as I was out riding myself in good weather slot.

What a monument. Must admit I shouted so hard it was about to smash the windows of my apartment. And then I cried. So happy he won it, after such long long long wait.

 

[Dazed and Confused]

Does the top 10 seem random to you?
Pog, WVA, MvdP, Mads .... I think most everybody would have predicted them to finish top 10.
I could argue it's the same old faces once again, the opposite of randomness.

Most had these in the top 5, but one was excused as he was really affected by a crash .... 2 months earlier.

 

[tobydawq]

And tomorrow, will start my yearly sadness of having to wait 364 days until we get to watch another.

It will only be 363 days by tomorrow.

 

[Gratemans]

Asked if he is already looking for more next year, he said that it's not a race he enjoys or looks forward to, just one he is good at.

I love that description 😆

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Fair enough. I can see your points but I don't really know what you could have realistically hoped for in today's race if a Van Aert win over Pogi is also dismissed as something we've seen lots of times before. It's not like Aivaras Mikutis and Victor Vercouillie were going to be duking it out for the win.

Of course, but I felt like with the mechanicals it might have left us with a larger selection, or some riders like Pedersen still there as wildcards at least until somewhere like Carrefour de l'Arbre. I think something like 2011 or 2016 where the big guns cancel each other out was unlikely, but I'd hoped that we'd still have more options on the table until a bit later on. As it was, we got a great middle phase of the race, but it all calmed down a lot for the last 40-50k once it was clear that the duo was decisively away, and the most excitement until they actually got to Roubaix was when Mathieu was getting the gap down to only around 20-25 seconds. And I don't really have the attachment to the narrative of van Aert or Visma-LeaseABike as an "underdog", because they're still so OP generally so I wasn't particularly attached to either outcome, I preferred van Aert of the two, but not enough to feel particularly invested in the outcome.

 

[Heston]

Most had these in the top 5, but one was excused as he was really affected by a crash .... 2 months earlier.

Im not sure which one of Wout and Mads you're talking about here. Surely it's true for both of them.

 

[Revelation]

Does the top 10 seem random to you?
Pog, WVA, MvdP, Mads .... I think most everybody would have predicted them to finish top 10.
I could argue it's the same old faces once again, the opposite of randomness.

More so about the randomness in terms of deciding the win, if nothing happened MVP was very likely to win IMO, Wout with an outside chance to staying in his wheel for a sprint.

 

[RobertCrawley]

 

[AnotherArmChair]

I dont understand people complaining about unfairness at PR with riders getting punctures? That is the nature of the race (and the sport) ...that these things can happen otherwise its not PR, its not cycling

Cycling is most of the time a 5 minute excitement slot in 4 hours of nothing much ,
Paris Roubaix is the most exciting of all pro cycling races imo exactly because anything can happen

Anyway so glad for Wout. It would have been a shame if he completed his career and never won PR considering he is so talented and tenacious and was built for cobbles

 

[SorelyBoy]

More so about the randomness in terms of deciding the win, if nothing happened MVP was very likely to win IMO, Wout with an outside chance to staying in his wheel for a sprint.

But the randomness is the unique thing about PR that sets it apart from the other races. It is brutal in a way the other races aren’t, both physically and emotionally. It breaks hearts as well as bodies and to win it you need less unluck than your competitors. Indeed there have been many editions of the race where Wout was the strongest rider, but had no luck at all. The cycling gods must smile on you with many other races, but especially so for this one.

 

[RobertCrawley]

I dont understand people complaining about unfairness at PR with riders getting punctures? That is the nature of the race (and the sport) ...that these things can happen otherwise its not PR, its not cycling

Cycling is most of the time a 5 minute excitement slot in 4 hours of nothing much ,
Paris Roubaix is the most exciting of all pro cycling races imo exactly because anything can happen

Anyway so glad for Wout. It would have been a shame if he completed his career and never won PR considering he is so talented and tenacious and was built for cobbles

That's why good teams win these races. Punctures and other mechanicals are going to happen. Teams must be prepared and ready along the route for every possibility.

And that means making sure everyone on the team has the same cleats so they can switch bikes.

 

[Heston]

I dont understand people complaining about unfairness at PR with riders getting punctures? That is the nature of the race (and the sport) ...that these things can happen otherwise its not PR, its not cycling

Cycling is most of the time a 5 minute excitement slot in 4 hours of nothing much ,
Paris Roubaix is the most exciting of all pro cycling races imo exactly because anything can happen

Anyway so glad for Wout. It would have been a shame if he completed his career and never won PR considering he is so talented and tenacious and was built for cobbles

My complaint is the opposite. It was ridiculous for Alpecin to wait for Pogacar before Arenberg.

 

[Unterlenkerfahrend]

If you told me 5 years ago how much I'd cheer for WVA to win a race I would have laughed at you. Very happy he finally gets it and we don't have another alien victory. At 30km to go I was certain he would get cooked but he actually played it perfect all the way.
Side note but MVDP incredible strong to actually finish 4th despite being over 2 minutes down after Arenberg with about 50 riders ahead of him at that point. Think a comeback like that hasn't happened in a long time and gone a bit under the radar.