"I’ve never had so much pain" - Maxim van Gils has day to forget at La Fleche Wallonne 2025

After finishing on the podium at La Fleche Wallonne twelve months ago, Maxim van Gils had a day to forget at the Ardennes Classic in 2025. Plagued by the after-effects of a crash at the Amstel Gold Race last weekend, the Belgian struggled home to a 43rd placed finish, more than a minute and a half down on race-winner Tadej Pogacar.

“How’s my back? Not great, honestly,” Van Gils admitted honestly in an interview with Sporza at the finish. “And I’ve never had so much pain in my legs as I did today. Things aren’t going well right now.”

Having already come into the race with a bit of pain, probably the last thing Van Gils needed was a cold, wet and just generally miserable day weather wise. “Yeah, I was cold. But it was mostly my legs that hurt during the race. Every time I got out of the saddle, I felt pain in my tailbone. I tried to change my pedalling a bit, but... yeah,” he sighs glumly. “I just don’t know right now.”

“Yesterday, the plan was to just sign in and not actually ride. I ended up finishing the race, but last year I was third, and now I’m one of the last. That’s tough to swallow,” he explains, and with Liege-Bastogne-Liege this Sunday, could the Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe star's hopes be diminished on the weekend? “Look, I can feel some improvement compared to yesterday, but a lot still needs to happen between now and Sunday,” the Belgian concludes.