Good to be back racing in my home country, typical Belgian conditions. 😅☔ I want to apologise to @benjeturner for the incident during the race. It shouldn’t have happened. Time to recover now and focus on @flechewallonne 🔜 👊🏼 #TheWolfpack
Disappointed Evenepoel after a dramatic Brabantse Pijl, "the strongest team won"
CyclingWednesday, 13 April 2022 at 22:00
Remco Evenepoel has set to the start of Brabantse Pijl as co-leader alongside Julian Alaphilippe, but it was a far from perfect day for Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl Team as the Frenchman failed to perform and later crashed due to a team car, whilst Evenepoel couldn't succeed in the finale.
The young Belgian was very active in the head of the race for the final two hours of racing, and eventually found himself in the decisive ten-men move that went clear with 53 kilometers to go as some riders followed him. What followed was a complicated affair, having been dropped twice in some of the race's cobbled ascents, but always coming back to the head of the race and attacking on the flatter sections.
“INEOS Grenadiers was at the front with three men. When that guy [Magnus Sheffield] rode away and they jump on your wheel every time, there's not much you can do about it," he told Wielerflits. “I don't know if the strongest rider won. But probably yes, because if you can attack like this you are very strong. But the strongest team won. They were with three out of seven. INEOS has deserved to win the race."
With Sheffield, Turner and Pidcock, INEOS Grenadiers again played their strength in numbers and blocked the counter-attacks after Magnus Sheffield set off for the win in the final kilometers. Evenepoel had already had an incident mid-race with Ben Turner when he pushed him, which he then apologized after the race on Twitter.
The drama would still unfold further though, as in the final sprint Evenepoel found himself gesturing in displeasure to some riders ahead. Tim Wellens was relegated due to an irregular sprint, which almost saw Evenepoel crash towards the end: “Tim Wellens came all the way to our side, while everyone was in his wheel. That's not a clean maneuver. If I don't brake, we'll be in the barriers. It is still possible to relaunch, but I couldn't get through it at all. That's frustrating, because I still had something in my legs for a sprint. But the podium already failed.”
Evenepoel ended up in sixth place, and will now be eyeing the remaining Ardennes classics where he will have a very important role within the team. “It was very difficult. It was slippery and difficult to stay upright and not fall. I didn't feel very comfortable on the cobbles either, but it was an epic day. On the local lap I almost froze. I know I can never get the most out of it. I also expected it to be a bit more fun, but it was a serious day. That will creep in.”
“I wouldn't like to do the Flemish classics either. Those two sections were already difficult today, let alone the Flemish races. Especially with this difficult weather. Maybe when the weather is better," he concluded.
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