Quick-Step DS Wilfried Peeters keen with team's performance in Saudi Arabia

Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl Team began the Saudi Tour with big ambitions regarding the GC and stage wins but didn't acomplish neither. Nevertheless, there is a sense of satisfaction within the team.

It could be said it was the lack of pressure that meant there wouldn't be a major issue with a lack of a win in Saudi Arabia from Quick-Step, but things just didn't click into place it seemed. Despite being incredibly agressive, as always, in the crosswinds, the team didn't manage to capitalize on it.

“We tried our best this week. We attacked in the crosswinds, we put pressure on others, but we also had some bad luck when Andrea was involved in that opening day crash," Peeters said, referring to the bizare crash of Andrea Bagioli in the opening stage where he hit an unmarked road obstacle on a gravel road.

From there on, with the leader out of contention for the GC, the team still tried to set him up for the win in both hilly stages of the race, where he showed good legs after appearing to recover from the incident, but both times he came up just short of a win. Finishing second to Santiago Buitrago on the second day, then missing the wheel of overal winner Maxim Van Gils in the final meters of the climb on the queen stage, Bagioli hit the pole twice.

As for the rest of the team, Davide Ballerini didn't manage to start off the season as he did last year and his best result was a third place now late into the race on the final stage. Tim Declercq ended up being the rider who was the most successful, finishing 4th in the overall, but the team will likely wonder if he could have gotten a better result if they would have changed strategy.

"We stayed true to our mentality and fighting spirit, attacking every time it was possible. We didn’t get a victory, but we can be satisfied with our outing and the prize for the best team of the race”.