Welcome to the 16th edition of the Kuurne-Bruxelles-Kuurne one day race. Not counting races in the PTHC category this serves as the 3rd cobbled classic for the PCT division. It's not the most difficult cobbled classic given its medium length, a long flat sector towards the finish and not too many kilometres of cobbles. But the riders do usually make it hard with how they race it. Expect plenty of attacks before the finish and we'll see if any of them stick or we'll see a sprint contested by the top cobbled specialists.
With that in mind let's look at some of the favourites:
Favourites
FL
HI
ST
RS
CB
SP
AC
Girmay
77
71
76
76
81
77
76
Per
79
70
74
75
82
74
74
Ovsyannikov
74
69
75
72
80
79
78
Gamper
77
67
77
77
81
64
71
Rutsch
77
69
76
75
79
69
68
Jacobs
76
69
77
76
79
67
68
Spengler
74
67
74
73
83
62
70
Stewart
77
72
74
77
76
76
71
Rossi
78
70
75
74
77
68
69
The preview has been written before the first few cobbled races, but my expectations is that we see Girmay vs Per fighting for the top spot in the majority of races. Per is the stronger all around rider, but Girmay is also strong and has a great sprint at the end of races. The other two riders that look the most likely to get in between the two main favourites are Ovsyannikov and Gamper. The former is the best sprinter in any cobbled race which makes him a threat if that's how the race finishes. Gamper on the other hand is a powerful rider. You don't really fancy him in a sprint, but he can certainly make a big impact whenever he goes on the attack.
With the 2nd line of favourites I think it's harder to see them go for the win, but if the top guys underperform then a spot on the podium is still perfectly reasonable. Rutsch and Jacobs are both very capable and we should see them in the group of favourites. Spengler tends to flatter to deceive given his top CB stat, but lower FL and ST along with one with the worst SP stats usually work against him when competing for the podium spots. Stewart brings a varied skill set with a good sprint, but based on the CB stat alone he's definitely more of a wildcard. Finally there is Rossi who I am a fan of. I like a high FL stat and he's well balanced in general.
Outsiders
FL
HI
ST
RS
CB
SP
AC
Bohli
74
68
79
75
77
74
68
Pithie
74
72
76
74
77
73
74
Schreurs
72
67
75
75
77
72
71
Kuroeda
74
63
72
73
77
74
78
Lampawog
76
68
76
75
77
64
68
Kalf
72
66
76
74
75
73
70
Uhlig
72
65
72
74
78
65
75
Wisniowski
76
67
69
70
79
69
70
Ariesen
75
68
74
73
75
70
71
Owen
73
69
73
71
78
64
71
Hvideberg
78
70
74
74
76
65
65
Ulloa
72
70
73
72
77
68
68
Heinrich
70
60
70
77
76
67
73
Orue
69
64
77
70
78
53
58
Sweeck
72
67
69
70
75
69
69
Bohli and Pithie would have made the top table had they not had an even better rider to work for. Schreurs has shown multiple times that he's capable of a very good result. I think Kuroeda is a better leader than domestique, but he'll be important for Spengler. I like Lampawog's energy to stick with the favourites, but he needs good positioning to make for lower SP/AC. Kalf and Uhlig gives Rohan a nice varied option of a stronger cobbler and better sprinter although Kalf does have the better ST also. Wisniowski is a real mystery to me if I'm honest. Great CB and FL which is important and his speed is still solid, but that ST and RS combo is rough.
KBK was Bini's second best race last year when he finished 2nd. It's our second win goal this year, and just like in OHN the goal is at least a podium. OHN turned out really poorly, so I'm hoping this will be better.
Very kind to put Stewart in the list of favourites, but sadly I'd rather expect him to either be completely anonymous and miss out on a decisive split, or to waste his energy on another useless mid-range attack. The only good strategy would be to sit in the front third of the peloton and then rock the bunch sprint, and I'd happily take that - but from what I've seen last year and in Omloop, I'm not very confident sadly
Kuurne-Bruxelles-Kuurne 
