"Am I currently in the form of my life?" - Mads Pedersen ready to tackle Hell of the North with very strong Lidl-Trek lineup

Attacking and then finishing second behind Mathieu van der Poel at the E3 Saxo Classic, winning Gent Wevelgem by himself with a long solo attack and finish second at the Tour of Flanders ahead of van der Poel and van Aert. Mads Pedersen is having the best spring of his life, and his peak form could be enough to net him a Paris-Roubaix win.

“There is no reason not to be happy. My classics season has already gone very well. We can therefore start Paris-Roubaix with optimism, with the ambition to win the race," Pedersen said in words to CyclingPro.net.

The Dane does put pressure on himself, if anything then the 'Chasing Cobbles' documentary makes it very clear that he does not want to end his career without a monument. This Sunday is the last opportunity to do so this year, “Am I currently in the form of my life? I don't know, but I am certainly in top form. I have never been better in the classics.”

With a very experienced team besides him, Pedersen can count on a lot of tactical racing with Lidl-Trek, joined by Jasper Stuyven who looked perfect in Flanders, Jonathan Milan and other heavyweight rouleurs who've got years of experience in these kinds of races.

Ahead of Roubaix, he has gone with a familiar preparation which seemed to work last week. “We copied our preparation for the Tour of Flanders. That means: rest on Monday, then I trained hard for three days, and then rest again.”

But what will happen on a windy and slightly muddy edition of Roubaix is a mystery for him: “That is difficult to say. It will depend on the wind and the course of the race. It will be a fierce battle again in any case. This race should suit me a bit better, but I have also experienced lesser editions. But, this is the classic that should suit me best.”