Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to one of the most traditional and greatest races in cycling - welcome to De Ronde van Vlaanderen, 2020 edition!
Let's first take a look at the profile, that is as insane as always:
As last year, 25 cobbled sections between 144m and 2.641km are awaiting us - for a total of more than 31 kilometers on cobbled roads! Furthermore, we'll have loads of steep climbs - and even better, several steep cobbled hills!
Every rider finishing this brutal race is a hero, and the winner instantly gets the status of a ManGame legend. And then there's super-ultra legend Tom Boonen, who holds the incredible record of five wins in this race!
But not far away is another legend - the only previous winner present this year, aiming to tie this win record: Sam Bewley! The Kiwi even has an achievement never reached by Boonen: three straight wins. A total of four wins along with two 2nd places and a 3rd place in the last 7 years - not even "Tommeke" achieved this!
And this year, will it be Bewley's Last Hurrah? After even he is finally start to feel kicking in his age, he will likely have his last - and only - chance to get that fifth title. He's coming back as our defending champion - and for one last time will be among the top favorites.
But, ladies and gentlemen - have we ever seen a field as packed as this year's? Although Bewley is no longer part of the select top cobblers group - whereof he was the only member participating last year - there are three riders with an 83 COB stat at the start line, including reigning World Champion Wisniowski. We have four riders - including Bewley - just one level below. And another four with 81 COB. Which makes it 11 riders above 80 COB, compared to 8 last year - be prepared for a race with incredible quality out on the road!
Let's actually take a look at these top riders, along with some strong outsiders.
First of all - honor to whom honor is due - is defending champion Sam Bewley. Sure, he has declined in the offseason, but he still belongs to the absolute world class riders. Whereas his cobbles stat is no longer top, he still is at the same time one of the best cobblers AND sprinters, making him the huge favorite if the race should be decided in a sprint from a select group. His sprint speed as well as his acceleration are unmatched in this year's De Ronde peloton.
Furthermore, he is still a great flat rider, and handles hills pretty well - something that could be decisive. And last but not least, his stamina is still among the best, which could well be a factor as well in such a long and brutal race.
When looking at his season so far, the first result that hits the observer's eye is a stage win and a 3rd GC rank in Qatar, showing that he definitely still is a top-notch sprinter.
He then competed in East Java, where he was among the top favorites for stage one - but he left Indonesia with a disappointing 11th stage rank.
The chance for redemption then came in Milano San Remo, where he tried to surprise his opponents with a late attack. However, he obviously launched too early and finally cracked, finishing only 16th.
Strada Appia Antica was his final preparation race - and the only cobbled one. And while he missed out on the decisive move by a rider presented later, he made the best out of it and took 3rd place, showing that he's still world-class on the cobbles!
And finally, let's take a look at his support cast. Compared to most other teams, Boros, Hnik and Polnicky are great support riders - but some of his strongest competitors might have slightly stronger assistance. Will this stop him from getting that fifth title? Or will he really be able to match the one and only Tom Boonen? We'll find out!
Lukasz Wisniowski will be one of his main rivals on the road to glory. The reigning World Champion has trained a lot on the cobbles this winter, and now belongs to the absolute world class in this domain. He is one of the strongest rouleurs in the peloton as well, and now even handles the sharp climbs slightly better than the Kiwi. His stamina and resistance are great, too - the only situation he must be slightly afraid of is a sprint against Bewley, where the aging star is at least two levels above him. Against most other top cobblers, he can win a head-to-head - against the Kiwi it's rather unlikely. But he should definitely be able to improve on last year's 5th place!
How has he done so far in 2020? Just as his main rival, he rode in Qatar, where he finished 29th, thanks to a good epilogue. However, that skill won't be really helpful today.
And he also competed in Milano San Remo - beating Bewley by finishing 13th on what was a great day for his team anyway.
Of course, he also participated in the first big cobbled race of the PT season, Strada Appia Antica - coming back as the defending champion. Although it wasn't a worst-case scenario for his team, 5th place definitely was a disappointing result.
He was looking for redemption in Ronde van Nederland - yet another non-cobbled race. But his attack on stage one miserably failed, with him finishing in the bottom 10, and the other stages didn't go much better. An overall 110th place, more than 10 minutes behind the winner, wasn't really what he was looking for to boost morale.
But at least, his team is pretty much as strong as a team can be. Pedersen already supported him last year as a loanee, and he seems to be predestinated to follow his leader's footsteps soon - having even stronger physical stats and a much better sprint are obviously great basics. Ringheim and Jansen are two more great cobblers Wisniowski will have by his side. The only downside might be the team's lack of a great puncheur, but that won't penalize them compared to Moser.
All in all, he seems to be ready for the title this year - can he deliver? Or will Pedersen suddenly become their number one, if the race isn't as hard as expected?
Next in the list of world-class cobblers is the only one who isn't new in this league: Danny Summerhill! The US-American is one of only a few still active riders having already achieved a podium in this race, back in 2017. Riding for a PCT team, he doesn't get the possibility to shine on the highest level very often - which is a pity!
And he's definitely not here just for fun. Of the top cobblers, he's the one who handles hills best - which could come in really handy today! However, whereas he's a great rider on the flat as well, he lacks some of the resistance we mentioned for his main competitors. And - maybe worst - he's an even slower sprinter than Wisniowski, while his acceleration isn't top-notch, either. But he definitely is one great fighter - let's see if that will carry him to glory!
Of course, riding mainly at PCT level, it is hard to compare his 2020 season with his rivals. Nonetheless, let's take a look at it:
In Omloop het Nieuwsblad, he kicked off his season in the very best possible way: with a dominant solo win! None of his PCT competitors stood any chance in that race.
He had to fight much harder in Geraardsbergen - Bosberg - but the outcome was the same: he left behind his last challenger on the final meters and won!
And as all good things come in threes, he completed his hat-trick in Roma Maxima, where he again soloed to the line, having attacked with 6km to go. 3 races, 3 wins - all of them at PCT level.
Which of course means that the first encounter with the PT stars in Strada Appia Antica was of particular interest. And guess what? He continued his perfect record this year, getting a fourth straight win, demonstrating that even PT level is too easy for him!
Le Samyn then was again a C1 race - so to speak setting the difficulty level back to "very easy" for the US American. Is anyone surprised he won for the 5th time in as many races?
He then had one more race with Strade Bianche - and finally one where he wasn't among the favorites, given the absence of cobbles. Hence, it was no surprise that he was beaten for the only time this year so far, finishing only 125th. Still, having one every single cobbled race he participated in so far definitely puts him among the top favorites of this Ronde van Vlaanderen - maybe even right on top of the list!
And finally to his main advantage compared with those mentioned before - and pretty much all of those listed later on: his team. Definitely, Andorra Cycling Project don't look like a PCT lineup on the cobbles, bringing Pieter Vanspeybrouck as a lieutenant! The local hero was just as successful in this race as his designated leader, stepping on the podium in 2016, and reaching four straight Top 10 results from 2015 to 2018. He would be a leader in most other teams, but now he's "just" here to help Summerhill - what a luxury! Of course, if he can protect his captain until the final cobbled sections, that might really make a difference!
But apart from Vanspeybrouck, there are also Machado and Eeckhout - two more great cobblers, who however lack the punch to survive the hills. Nonetheless, they will be important in the first part of the race. With this support cast, can Summerhill create the big upset and win this monument?
We then have another rider who did heavy cobbles training in the offseason: Lukas Spengler. The Swiss hasn't scored a noteworthy result in this race so far - probably on one hand because he didn't belong to the top cobblers group until now, and on the other hand because of his weaknesses in other domains. His lack of stamina and resistance compared to the top cobblers may hurt him as much as his lower speed on the flat and on the hills. Sprinting isn't his favorite domain, either - he's really "just" a world-class cobbler, lacking some great support stats. The combination of this will probably hold him back in this difficult race - but on a great day he could still surprise everyone!
The only appearance on the cobbles so far then came in March, meeting all the big guns in Strada Appia Antica. The hilly first part definitely didn't suit him well, and so his 15th place was more or less corresponding with the expectations. We'll see whether that gave him enough of a boost to step up here, though.
His support mainly consists of decent Swiss cobblers - Bohli and Grand. Whereas the former at least is a decent sprinter, the latter pretty much shares all of his captain's weaknesses. However, they do bring a lot of firepower for the hills, with Müller and especially Ponzi! However, the Italian superstar would need the cobbles to be ridden very slowly to have a chance of getting a result. But he'll definitely be a great help on the non-cobbled uphill sections. Will that be enough to allow Spengler getting a top result?
Now, let's step down one level in terms of pure cobbles skills, as we're presenting a man who stood on the podium here when a certain Kiwi got his first race win: Adam Blythe. The Brit may well be a tad slower on the cobbles than the previously presented riders, but he's one of the stronger sprinters among the top cobblers. And we can't say anything negative about his stamina and flat skills, either.
However, what might stand in his way is on one hand his rather low resistance, along with some lack of punch compared to the biggest favorites. But whoever has already claimed a podium spot here should never be ruled out - and especially not a constant Top 10 finisher (4x in the last five years)!
The Brit had an unspectacular start of the season in Qatar, where he was primarily assigned to domestique duties.
Copenhagen - Malmö - where he finished dead last with his team as expected - and Tirreno - Adriatico were just warm-up races for him as well.
He then met with all the big cobblers in Italy for Strada Appia Antica. Being not among the best puncheurs, he could be pretty happy with his 8th place, showing that we'll have to watch out for him on the cobbles.
As you would expect from Evonik - ELKO, they bring a very strong squad - for the flat. But it's an open question whether Stoltz can really help him here, being the team's worst cobbler. Neilands will likely be the top domestique - a very useful one, but surely not the best choice compared to other teams. For the hills, several riders are slightly stronger than their leader, but not so strong that he'd tire out when following their wheels. Let's see what that strategy is worth - can Blythe claim another podium in such a packed field?
In this 82 COB group, we have two more riders - both wearing the same jersey! Let's start with last year's runner-up Florian Senechal. After having just missed out on the podium in 2016 and 2017, he was only beaten by a dominant Bewley last year, outsprinting a rider we will present later on.
What was it that made this 2nd place possible? Besides the obvious cobbles skills, the Frenchman is a strong flat rider - and he has a whole lot of stamina, being among the least tiring riders in the peloton. His resistance is pretty good as well - what may lack a bit are his hill-riding and sprint. However, with an acceleration that is better than most other top competitors', he could make up for those weaknesses - and it probably was this same acceleration that brought him that 2nd place in 2019.
This was even worse in Milano San Remo, where he was dropped early in the race and finished the race inside the bottom 20.
What was much more meaningful, though - we're repeating ourselves - was his showing in Strada Appia Antica, where he finished 7th in a world-class field. Not quite top-notch, but not bad, either.
In Ronde van Nederland, he then again had a completely anonymous race, finishing on 129th place in the GC. Let's see if that was what he needed to give him the final kick to get the win here!
And as we said, he's not the clear leader of his team, as Arman Kamyshev absolutely matches the Frenchie's cobbles skills. The Kazakh finished in the lower Top 10 in the previous two editions and is surely striving for more! Just as his teammate, he has an incredible diesel engine - an almost indestructible one. In fact, the two teammates are first and second in the stamina list among all participants!
Moreover, his flat skills and resistance are even better than Senechal's. What he lacks, however, is the punch. He is among the weakest hill riders of the top cobblers - and his acceleration is almost inexistent. No wonder that his sprint is none to be proud of, either. So it would probably be a good idea for him to mainly help his teammate - but with such a great double spearhead, they'll surely keep some flexibility to decide in-race whom to ride for!
Or maybe they'll just look at the 2020 results so far? As the Team Tinkoff duo have done exactly the same races so far with the exception being Ronde van Nederland, they're pretty easy to compare.
In Milano San Remo, he joined his teammate in being dropped early, and finished even one position behind.
Then came the first big cobbles test with Strada Appia Antica - which ended with a clear win for Senechal, as Kamyshev only took 19th place, even behind teammate Sulimov.
So, that gives an advantage for Senechal, who will probably be the team's leader here. But we'll see what the race really brings.
Now we've seen that these two make up for a great leader duo - but what about the support? Well, it is pretty decent to say the least, too. Sulimov is a great cobbler in his own right, being weaker on the flat than his leaders, but stronger on the hills - can he pull them up? Zubov is another strong cobbler, but he's clearly lacking some physical strength, especially for long and hilly races. And here, we have both. Manakov, on the other hand, could provide great support, too. Still a decent cobbler, he can push really hard on the flat, and his stamina means he won't be exhausted after the first 100km already. All in all, the Russians bring a really strong team - let's see if this strength - especially with the signing of Kamyshev - is what can get them the win!
Let's again take one stop down on the cobbles stat ladder, as we hit a value of 81. The first representative of this trio was already presented in Vanspeybrouck, so let's move ahead with Joeri Stallaert! He wasn't present last year, as his now promoted PCT team didn't get a wildcard, but two years ago, he accomplished the impossible: He beat Sam Bewley! Unfortunately for him, Van Avermaet was even stronger back then, meaning he finished runner-up in 2018. Two more Top 10 results in 2015 and 2017 clearly show that he's a dangerous man - and especially so when the race is decided in a sprint! He's the best sprinter among the top cobblers - after Bewley, of course, and his acceleration is among the best of today's top favorites, too.
Flat skills, stamina - no problem for the Belgian, either. Hills - well, could be better, but could be worse as well. However, what might be the most worrying is his low resistance - being among the lowest of the top cobblers. Therefore, he'll have to hope that the many, many hills aren't ridden too hard - or he might lose contact.
What does this mean for his 2020 results so far? What we can say is that he's a late starter into the season, having done his first race only two and a half weeks ago. In Strada Appia Antica, he had a very strong showing, finishing right behind the podium spots in 4th place, beating last year's winner Wisniowski.
If he was meant to lead his team in Ronde van Nederland, then he miserably failed his task, not even finishing a single stage in the Top 50. 136th place overall was still the second best result for his team - proving that they probably already had their thoughts on tomorrow's race!
Finally, let's take a look at his teammates. All in all, "solid" would be the most fitting predicate, as Kosic, Tiller and Sweeck definitely all are good cobblers, but no outstanding ones like some of their competition. Eriksson and Vendrame might be of some help on the non-cobbled hills, but both are likely to be dropped rather early. For how long can the team support Stallaert? Will he be strong enough to hold on to the leaders until the finale, where everything would be possible for him? We'll find out!
Mike Teunissen is another pretty well-rounded cobbler. And the last one on our list who knows how it feels to stand on De Ronde's podium, finishing 3rd last year. Yeah, he was that guy who was outsprinted by Senechal, which pretty much sums up his sprint and acceleration skills.
Although he isn't the strongest hill rider, too, he proved along with the Frenchie that this isn't the most important skill for this race. Instead, physical condition is really important - and that's where the Dutchman shines. His stamina is among the best - matching Bewley's after the Kiwi's decline - and his resistance can carry him quite far, too. And as almost all the top cobblers, he's a very good flat rider as well. Will that be enough to take the two remaining steps up from 3rd place?
He kicked off his season with Tour of Qatar, which definitely wasn't the best suited race for him, and so he mainly appeared in breakaways. A good warm-up for the tasks to come, though.
Which holds as well for Tirreno - Adriatico, where he had a rather anonymous race, with a 14th place being his best stage result. In such a hilly race, 66th place in the GC should be quite OK for him.
Much more was then expected for Strada Appia Antica, the first cobbled race of the year. However, the race likely was a bit too puncheur-heavy for him, so he couldn't quite keep up with the top guys. 9th place still is a decent result.
Just like all the previously mentioned riders who participated in Ronde van Nederland, it was a no-show by him, except for one (failed) breakaway attempt on the closing stage. A 121st GC place couldn't save a disastrous race by his team - let's see if they can do better tomorrow!
However, in terms of support strength, Teunissen likely won't be too happy. Sure, Potts is a decent cobbler, who moreover does the hills well and could do some good work for his boss there - but he's still one level below other favorites' top domestiques. Kruijswijk and Malecki can handle some cobbles, too - but will this be enough? Is another podium in reach given this stacked startlist?
We then get to Michel Sibilla, of whom we definitely can't say he's well-rounded. Sure, the cobbles are his friends, so a good result might be within reach (he finished 10th in 2013, his best result so far), but the competition is fierce. But what is it that makes us doubt if he can stay with the other favorites?
Well, pretty much everything, unfortunately. He's the weakest flat rider, the weakest hill rider, has the (joint) lowest stamina and resistance, low sprint and acceleration - all of this sounds a bit like a weaker version of Spengler. Nonetheless, he'll be fast on those cobbles - and on a great day, anything can happen if you know how to ride them well!
Maybe we get some hints of his expected performance when looking at his results so far this year. As a warm-up, he rode Paris-Nice and Milano San Remo. In France, he finished inside the bottom 10 in a race not really suited for his skillset. The same happened in Italy, though - which might make us ask serious questions about his current form.
An underwhelming 56th place in Strada Appia Antica then even led to an emergency meeting in his team, where it seems that even his immediate future in this season was discussed.
Ronde van Nederland showed that these discussions were completely fruitless, as he finished second last - no, the hills aren't his friends, not even the Dutch ones! Not the best basics to come here...
Can his team maybe make up for some of his weaknesses here? At least for the flat, they can, as they bring powerhorse Arashiro. However, he is rather likely to be dropped early, so he might not be that helpful. And then we have Saya and Shiki Kuroeda. Whereas the former is the best supporter on the cobbles, the latter handles the hills better and also has much better physical stats - especially his resistance is among the best in the whole pack today! Let's see how far they can push their team leader!
Now, we take one more step down, arriving at 80 COB - and at one of the most interesting riders in the peloton today: Floris Gerts. The Dutchman has greatly improved his cobbles skills this winter, and now is knocking on the door of the world-class cobblers. But it's not his cobbles stat alone that makes him so interesting and likely to greatly improve his best results so far (2x 15th in 2018 and 2019).
No, it's on one hand his punch. Gerts is clearly the best hill rider among today's favorites. And besides having the flat skills and stamina necessary to do well here, he has an incredible resistance, matched only by Pedersen (and bested by Yatsevich, who definitely won't be in contention today). This will likely mean that it's going to be incredibly hard to get rid of him on flat and uphill cobbles! On the downside, even if he's able to hang on, he isn't the best sprinter (yet among the better ones). How far can his improved skillset carry him?
What we can say is that the season started really well for him, as he picked up a great 10th place in the PT season opener in China. Being a good puncheur with great resistance already paid out there.
Things didn't work out in his favor in Milano San Remo, though, where he messed up with his positioning and then was caught by a split on the hills. 91st place was surely not the result he had hoped for.
So, it was time for redemption in Strada Appia Antica - and he delivered like a boss! Behind the untouchable Summerhill, he finished 2nd, proving that his strength on the hills along with the cobbles training should be a very promising skillset for Ronde van Vlaanderen, too!
In the final preparation race, Ronde van Nederland, he was the strongest among those of today's top favorites present there. Even though he wasn't the team's captain - rather a luxury domestique for Grosu - he finished 22nd in the GC, with a 19th place being his best stage result. Compared to the others, that was rock solid!
With Lampaert, he brings along a good cobbler, who will mainly be able to protect his leader on the flat. Just as Ariesen and Roosen, whereas the latter handles the hills pretty well. But does Gerts really need any help on the uphill sections? In that case - at least for the non-cobbled hills - there would still be Kaczmarek and Lammertink, both of which may however not survive many cobbled sections.
Will the training already pay out this year? Will he need more of it? Is the team strong enough to support him even late into the race? We'll see!
Edward Theuns matches Gerts' cobbles skills, and he's the second best hill rider among the top cobblers. His 6th place last year showed that he's got the skillset it takes to shine in this race - strong cobbles, decent hills, and good stamina. Where he lacks a bit is in his flat riding skills, and he isn't in the highest tier when talking about resistance, either. However, being one of the better sprinters in the field, he's got a good chance to get another great result here - can he even attack the podium?
He had a slow start to the season in Qatar, keeping out of all that sprinting stuff.
The Volta a Portugal then definitely warmed up his (climbing) legs more - and boy, did he warm them up! He actually even was on fire, winning stage 2 of this race!
Unlike Gerts, he was on the right side of the split in Milano San Remo - but still wasn't able to finish high up. His 60th place was still the team's second best result...
But to get a true assessment of his cobbles shape, we had to wait for Strada Appia Antica. He must have left with mixed feelings, as his 12th place was only the second-best result for his team, with Gaday finishing 20" earlier and just inside the Top 10.
Ronde van Nederland was his final preparation race as well, but he wasn't expected to shine there, and he didn't. Still, 64th place overall is the second best result any of today's top competitors have to offer from this race.
In terms of team support, he'll mainly have Gaday by his side. The Argentine is very similar to Theuns in his skillset - slightly weaker on the cobbles, a bit stronger on the hills. This duo could actually work pretty well together. And what can De Buyst add in terms of support? His good resistance might allow him to stay with his leader for quite a long time as well, maybe along with Laporte. The depth is definitely there - but when the race gets harder, other favorites will have slightly stronger support. Will it still be enough to improve on last year's result?
And last but not least, let's talk about Amadou Bakari. However, we can't say a lot of good things about him. His only strength is the pure cobbles speed - the African has all other stats below 60! Which basically says that for him, a race would need to contain lots of cobbles, be flat and short. The cobbles are there, for sure, but the race will be way too tough for him to achieve any kind of noteworthy result. That's a harsh prediction - and we'd love to be proved wrong!
But his results so far unfortunately confirm this point. In the PCT season opener - a short and flat race (without cobbles), he finished dead last. Which was true as well in the Copenhagen - Malmö TTT, finishing more than 10 minutes behind his teammates.
It wasn't as bad in Omloop Het Nieuwsblad, but even in his only cobbled race so far, he finished outside the Top 100. 115th, to be precise.
Jelajah SKL then again was a race not cobbled at all, and he finished - dead last.
The final preparation race in Mexico, Circulo de Juarez, had an even easier profile - pan flat - but no cobbles, either. While he finished in the pack on the first four stages, he was dead last on stage 5 - and just finished 2nd last in the GC because another rider lost even more time due to a puncture...
So, the great cobbles skills really might not be worth much today - but maybe he'll surprise us for once?
We should definitely not forget that his team rides in PCT - but what they bring here is not really a cobbles squad. Only De Bondt can handle this terrain more or less decently. But then, there's Pluchkin. He won the ITT World Championships and the B World Championships despite the cobble sections - but can he really shine here? Sure, his stamina and resistance are great - but he will very likely not be able to keep up with the top cobblers - just as he couldn't in the A World Championships race. And then, there are no mountains here, "just" hills.
Can this team pull off a surprise? Honestly, it doesn't seem very likely. But PCT teams have surprised us many times already - why not here and now?
With the second wildcard team, we end our presentation of the favorites. We have seen the 14 strongest pure cobblers - but more well rounded riders can have a shot at a great result for sure! So in this tables, we include some more riders, and you can make up your own mind based on their strengths and weaknesses.
Big race for us. Win goal and a win would be great after some low scoring races. Hope for some good depth results as well, so fingers crossed for a good race. Gerts will fancy this over Roubaix, so expect him to light it up. Hopefully we will work out a good tactic, which will see Wisniowski coming to the final with all his superpower left.
Interesting seeing Ponzi here, but I would be surprised if he ends up playing a big role.
Key race for our team honestly. If Theuns fails here it's gonna be extremely disappointing, but I don't have too many reasons to think he will. Fortunately for us, he does have a strong enough support cast as highlighted in his extensive introduction here.
Yes, this is the best preview I have ever seen in MG history. Wow. The attention to previous results is remarkably researched, and that Bakari gets a spotlight is heartwarming.
I'm rooting for Bewley to tie the record. Think he deserves one more try at it. And honestly, him not dominating anymore is going to feel a little foreign and uncomfortable for everyone I think. Let's push it off one more year.
My favorite though, is Summerhill. He's looked terrific this season and the tandem with VSB has been surprisingly fruitful. Could very well be a wildcard winner here.
RIP Exxon Duke, David Veilleux, Double Feature, and Monster Energy
Absolutely mental preview. Surely an all time great - i cant even imagine how long it took to write that. Thanks for that!
I'm here with Blythe as my leader and i think that my support squad is pretty well suited for this kind of race. Aiming for a top 5 but its a tough competition so we'll see.
I obviously appreciate the compliments, but still no need to use superlatives... My big example is still Tamijo, from whose reports and previews I've taken a lot of great ideas (and even more, as you'll see tomorrow)!
By the way, the report will be posted in two parts (instead of three, as we had last year). Do you want both parts at the same time, or with a +/- 3h break as last year?
What an excellent and thorough preview, thank you Fabianski! Gotta say I am also rooting for Bewley here. I agree with your analysis on our team/Spengler. He will need a great day to do anything here due to the hills. I threw Ponzi in as a wild card because... who knows?
Looking forward to this! Don't have a strong opinion about a time gap in between reports as I'm not sure that I would catch the first in real time regardless.
That preview is insane, blink twice if you're being held hostage with nothing better to do, Fabianski!
Declerq was 20th last season, I'd be happy with a repeat of that. Maybe Cavagna and/or Meiler can play their cards mid-race for another surprise result like the former managed in Strada Appia.
That's about as much as I can hope for here, and would certainly improve our situation with the Giro approaching.
For the win, I could live with one last Bewbastard show.
Monster preview, in a good way! Thank you for that, Fabianski, that was a great read
I'm cheering for Wisniowski, would be cool to see the world champion win a monument in the rainbow jersey. He and Bewley must be considered the favourites, eventhough Summerhill is a very dangerous opponent, even from the PCT!
The preview and the first part were already a great read, looking forward to the final part!
Kasperkiewicz is leading us here, a shame he is not good enough yet to earn a feature in the preview, but I think he can make the top 10 on a good day already. Nice to see Stash represent us in the break and looking at the final picture I see some of our pink helmets still positioned okay-ish going into the finale!
An uneventful start for Declerq and Puma as a whole, which is a good thing looking at some of the names already dropped.
I think I can spot Declerq just hanging on to the big bulk of about 30 riders that still look good in that last shot.
I hope he can make that selection and aim for another Top 20 if the last domestiques left at the front use more energy relaying and protecting than he does just trying to stay with the group.
Good first part, right until the Pedersen news at the end there. Good presence near the front and some good work by Cosnefroy and Vermont. Hopefully Mads P can make it back again, otherwise it's all up to the main man.
Encouraging to see Spengler outlasting Bohli, it may suggest he's having a good day. The hills are definitely factoring in though. Looking forward to part 2!
Good read but not a lot happened so far. Neilands being dropped already is bad news but with multiple solid helpers that are all more versatile that must not be terrible news. Biggest surprise is easily that Mats P is dropped but he might well carry his group back on the next bit of flat road together with those riders that were supposed to be their teams leader.
Great report so far. The detail is immense. Im sure the second part will be filled with action. With Bakari dropping, Im expecting Sibilla to drop quite soon now too.
Ronde van Vlaanderen 
Qatar, showing that he definitely still is a top-notch sprinter.
East Java, where he was among the top favorites for stage one - but he left Indonesia with a disappointing 11th stage rank.
Milano San Remo, where he tried to surprise his opponents with a late attack. However, he obviously launched too early and finally cracked, finishing only 16th.
Ronde van Nederland - yet another non-cobbled race. But his attack on stage one miserably failed, with him finishing in the bottom 10, and the other stages didn't go much better. An overall 110th place, more than 10 minutes behind the winner, wasn't really what he was looking for to boost morale.
Classique du Grand-Duché, a hilly race and not at all suited for his skillset. Finishing among the bottom 15 surely wasn't great for his self-confidence, though.
Copenhagen - Malmö - where he finished dead last with his team as expected - and 
Paris-Nice and 
PT season opener in China. Being a good puncheur with great resistance already paid out there.
Volta a Portugal then definitely warmed up his (climbing) legs more - and boy, did he warm them up! He actually even was on fire, winning stage 2 of this race!
PCT season opener - a short and flat race (without cobbles), he finished dead last. Which was true as well in the 
Jelajah SKL then again was a race not cobbled at all, and he finished - dead last.
Circulo de Juarez, had an even easier profile - pan flat - but no cobbles, either. While he finished in the pack on the first four stages, he was dead last on stage 5 - and just finished 2nd last in the GC because another rider lost even more time due to a puncture...
