It had been foretold and it came to pass. “Often we get our asses kicked at the Opening Weekend,” QuickStep-AlphaVinyl director Tom Steels had told Cyclingnews earlier in the week, and a kicking was just what they got on Saturday afternoon at Omloop Het Nieuwsblad.
The Belgian team are the perennial reference point of the spring and it’s written into their DNA to open and dictate the cobbled Classics but, as Steels noted, they have a turbulent relationship with the Omloop and it’s companion, Sunday’s Kuurne-Brussel-Kuurne.
They did in fact win both races last year, and have won two of the past three editions of each, but they also have a longer history of fluffing their lines and collectively falling below the high bar they set for themselves. On Saturday, there was a new exhibition in that gallery.
Florian Sénéchal was the team’s top finisher in ninth, on a day the Frenchman and his teammates spent - as they say in this part of Belgium - chasing after the facts.
“It’s not the first time at the Opening Weekend… we have a love-hate relationship with it,” Steels told Cyclingnews in Ninove after delivering the team debrief.
“We were the guys who had to chase, huh. We were never really in a position where we could control the race. We were always a bit too far back. Sometimes you have those races. Then of course with Wout van Aert being outstanding, the best rider won, and we have work to do still.”
QuickStep’s cause had been complicated before the Omloop had even rolled out of a sun-kissed Gent on the symbolic opening day of the Classics season. Tim Declercq, the tireless workhorse who usually does the controlling in the first half of the races, had already been ruled out through a heart problem, and Bert Van Lerberghe fell sick with stomach problems overnight.
Out on the road, the Tour of Flanders champion Kasper Asgreen - who recently recovered from COVID-19 - ran into multiple mechanical problems just as the race was starting to stretch with 75km to go. He got back in but was then forced into a longer chase when he punctured again on the Wolvenberg with 55km to go.
The Berendries was where the race really opened up, with Van Aert going clear alongside teammate Tiesj Benoot and the Ineos duo of Tom Pidcock and Jhonatan Narvaez. No QuickStep riders made the boat, and they were forced onto the defensive, having to burn both Asgreen and Yves Lampaert in a furious chase ahead of the Muur van Geraardsbergen. Leadership was placed in the hands of Sénéchal and 2020 winner Zdenek Stybar but, although they made the next selection over the Muur, they were powerless as Van Aert stomped clear on the Bosberg.
Even Sénéchal, who normally packs a fast finish, could only manage ninth from the bunch kick for second place. Truly, a day to forget.
“We know our guys are still not 100 per cent, then all the little things start to count,” said Steels. “We lost Kasper, who had a flat tyre really bad moment when the race really started, so he had to chase long time. Other guys were just a bit too far back, and then you can’t win the race.
“On the Berendries, it’s clear those guys go and you know then that either you’re too far back or you didn’t have the legs. It’s not a disaster but it’s something that wakes you up. We have some homework to do, but it’s not the first time.”
Steels denied there was any indication on the team bus in the morning that such a performance could be on the cards, and nor did he have too many stern words for his riders on there in Ninove.
“We go easy on them. There is not one rider who did not give 100 per cent. They did the best they could with the legs they had, so you cannot be harsh on them. They have to be there every race but that doesn’t mean you are there every race.”
Indeed, they are familiar enough with this situation, and have been able to turn things around over the years. Paris-Nice and Tirreno-Adriatico form a barrier before the heart of the spring campaign, which is where the so-called ‘Wolfpack’ will be judged more strictly. Still there’s always an immediate opportunity to make amends, with Fabio Jakobsen joining the fray on Sunday at Kuurne-Brussel-Kuurne.
As for what’s needed tonight: “Patience, and a good glass of wine.”
