Scheldeprijs | Tim Merlier beats Jasper Philipsen and Matteo Moschetti to take yet another big sprint win

Tim Merlier has perhaps been the best sprinter of the year so far, and he has boosted that status this Wednesday afternoon by winning the Scheldeprijs. The Belgian classic was won in a bunch sprint by the Soudal - Quick-Step rider.

Away from Itzulia Basque Country where the climbers had a field day, over in Belgium the roads were nothing but flat. Four riders formed the day's breakaway: Baptiste Veistroffer, Tuur Dens, Ceriel Desal and Tijmen Eising.

The group never posed a threat to the peloton however and a bunch sprint would always be very hard to prevent. Desal was the last rider to be caught, already inside the final 10 kilometers, but what made the most difference was a mass crash with 12 to go which took out about half the peloton from contention for the stage win.

The leadout to the sprint was regular, with Lidl-Trek having the best approach to the front but not having the pure speed to contest the final sprint, as Jasper Philipsen launched first but saw his rival and compatriot Tim Merlier fly through in the final meters to take another high-level win. Matteo Moschetti sprinted to third place.