Binck Bank Tour 2018 – Stage 1 Preview

By David Hunter

Heerenveen – Bolsward 177.5km

The race begins with the usual sprint stage in Bolsward.

The stage is incredibly flat and should be a nailed on sprint, the only issue could be the weather. With the golden kilometre coming 23km from the finish, there is every chance of the break taking all the bonus seconds.

Weather

There is a chance of some thunderstorms, but the weather forecasters aren’t 100% sure. The wind is around 18km/h and is coming from the sea, which means that we could see echelons, as we have a large section of road perfect for crosswinds.

Finale

The straight road actually makes life more difficult for the sprint trains. With nothing to help stretch the bunch, we usually see a messy sprint. The roads in the closing lap circuit are also very narrow, making it very difficult to move up the bunch. To ensure your sprinter doesn’t get lost, it’s important to be on the front a long way from home.

Contenders

Dylan Groenewegen – this is his first race after taking 2 wins in the Tour de France. The young Dutchman continues to develop at a fast rate and is now one of the best sprinters in the world. He lines up here with his usual sprint train, but his team have actually brought even more men to help him. We usually see Martens, Jansen and Roosen, but we also have Van Hoecke to help in the closing stages and I expect to see Boom and Van Emden also involved. This is a brilliant sounding sprint train and it’s clear that Jumbo are here to win stages. Groenewegen will have found memories of this stage, he won in Bolsward in 2016.

Fabio Jakobsen – the youngster has enjoyed a great start to his QuickStep career, taking 3 wins this year. This is his first opportunity to sprint in a World Tour race, something he’ll be looking forward to. With team leaders to protect, I don’t think we’ll see a long sprint train. Instead, I think Jakobsen will have Sénéchal and Lampaert to help in the closing kilometres, but that should be enough to put him in a strong position.

Caleb Ewan – his move to Lotto Soudal has now been announced, but I’m not sure about Ewan’s current form. He went in the break in Ride London, before dropping back and eventually quitting the race. It can be difficult for a rider to perform at his best, when he knows his team no longer want him. He’ll have Edmondson and Kluge to guide him into position and a good performance will certainly help his confidence, which must be a little low just now.

Marcel Kittel – after a disastrous Tour, there are many questions for Kittel to answer. Do not be mistaken, his whole season has been a disaster. No longer is he a man to be feared, in fact, he’s become a joke figure. This is not very nice to write, but it’s the truth. He has a sprint train with no confidence in him and he seems unable to simply follow the wheel of his lead out man. I have no confidence in his ability to turn things around.

Timothy Dupont – I’m interested to see how his legs have responded from the Tour. Most riders see a positive impact after completing your first grand tour and Dupont will hope this is true. He hasn’t managed a win in 2018, but he has every chance of challenging for the podium in the opening stage.

Magnus Cort – after competing in the Euros on Sunday, it’s going to be very difficult for Cort. Not only was the race difficult, but he then had a plane journey, before eventually getting to his bed. This could present an opportunity for Riccardo Minali to sprint.

Prediction Time

The weather conditions should make this more interesting than usual, but I doubt any of the big names will lose time. Looking at the sprint trains, this seems a fairly easy prediction to make. A stage win for Dylan Groenewegen.

David Hunter

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