Van Aret was like a limpet!
Women’s race was fucking great, love that Jackson took the win after animating the break so much.
Too bad we missed out on the WVA MVDP fireworks at the end today, but an entertaining race all the same. P-R is just the best.
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Shes the only pro I follow on IG. What a crack-up !
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Summary
i was so bummed when wout flatted. i still think van der poel would have won, but it would have been a lot more fun!
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same, also bummed that MVDP took out Degenkolb and didn’t suffer any karma points for doing so
Ehh… that’s not really what happened though. I’m as heartbroken for Degenkolb to not get on the podium again, but that was a no-fault crash IMO.
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on replay it wasn’t as bad as it looked live (especially the part where MVDP stuck his elbow out from the head-on camera). He’s on form this spring and probably would have won it anyway, but it would have been a lot more fun to see 4+ people duking it out at the finish.
Can he win the other two monuments?
LBL is really lumpy and it’ll be tough not to get dropped by Pogy before the finale. Lombardia, yes. ATMO
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Agreed. As soon as JD was in the break I was pulling for a podium. No way he was going to win, but man it was sweet to see someone from the last generation up there again.
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I think if he targets Ardennes week next season the same way the targeted things so far this year, absolutely. He’ll have to be a bit lighter in theory, but I think he has a way better shot to go up against riders like Pogi than WVA does.
I’m sure he’s looking at the monuments the same way Pogi is. Anything less than completing the set is a career failure.
dunno if he can get light/small enough for Lombardia, but who really knows until he tries it 
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does LBL end on a flat after the climb now?
Edit: tarck doesn’t play nice with IG anymore @Kryptotal_Bogan?
###How The Race Was Won® on Instagram: "“…I felt like the cycling gods had looked down from heaven, sent a puncture down, and missed.” - @kit.e.nicholson on the Men’s Roubaix finale in the latest @escapecollective Pretty Serious Bike Racing Podcast. Link to that 🔥🔥🔥 in bio. . . . 🎥: Eurosport #cycling #procyckling #springclassics #cobbledclassics #parisroubaix #roubaix #parisroubaix2023 #cyclingpodcast #psbrp #escapecollective #prettyseriousbikeracingpodcast #thecyclinggods"
Ignore the hashtags I guess. This is a fun take on Degenkolb’s crash
VdP has shown a fair bit of success in the Ardennes in the past, I don’t think its too much of a stretch for him to win LBL. I’m sure, at some point, Pogacar will grow tired of winning it and stop showing up. Same goes for Lombardia. Or injury or something else. Especially if the Lombardia route reverts to one of the ‘easier’ iterations.
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I dunno, the struggles they both have with Pidcock on the hilly cyclocross tracks makes me skeptical. VdP is good for a few VO2max efforts, but he seems to get gassed after that.
Not saying its a guarantee, just that his skillset is wide enough that he shouldn’t be ruled out. He has, after all, won Flanders twice now, Amstel Gold, Strade Bianche, Brabantse Pijl, etc. Maybe needs a bit of focused training to really hone those in, but those are all races that are not without their share of punchy climbs. He also already has a top 10 in both LBL and Lombardia already.
Lets also not leave Wout out of this conversation, who has more than his share of climbing palmares already. Probably a more likely LBL/Lombardia winner than Mathieu, though.
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Pogi will have to bulk up for a tilt at Paris Roubaix. That will be the same year MVDP will target the Ardennes.
Let’s not forget that Phil Gilbert took out Lombardia twice not all that long ago. And while everyone since then has been a GC guy, I still think MVDP can win if he’s light and fresh.
I think Wout will always be just a LITTLE held back by his need to be in fighting shape for July. MVDP has already done everything he NEEDS to do at LeTour.
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