Ben Healy "had nothing left" for final sprint at Brabantse Pijl, EF Education-EasyPost rider forced to settle for 2nd

An impressive ride by 22-year-old Irishman, Ben Healy at Brabantse Pijl didn't have the fairy-tale ending the EF Education-EasyPost rider would have hoped. Healy admits he was completely out-of-gas come the final sprint.

'It was beautiful. I felt I was strong along the way and made a good effort," Healy said after the race in an interview with Eurosport. "Unfortunately there was someone as strong as me. I knew it would be difficult in the sprint. I tried to play the game as best I could, but it wasn't for me today. However, I did everything I could."

As the eventual winner Dorian Godon had been expected to win any sprint battle between the lead duo, many had questioned whether Healy would try a long-range attack. Instead, the Irishman chose to resolutely sit on the wheel of Godon until the AG2R Citroen Team rider opened his sprint. This wasn't necessarily tactical however, Healy just had nothing left.

"I know I don't have the fastest sprint, so I saved my legs in the last kilometre. When he opened the sprint, however, I had nothing left to react," he explains. “I took a nice step last winter and I want to build on that. I now have much more confidence. I'm still riding the rest of the Ardennes classics and hopefully the Giro after that."