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Mark Cavendish prevails in Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne

March 1, 2015
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Mark Cavendish won his second Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne Sunday in a bunch sprint to take his sixth victory of the year. Along with Omloop Het Nieuwsblad, KBK is the Flanders season opener, but the KBK tends to be more of a sprinters’ Flanders classic.

It took a while for a breakaway to form, but when it did, it was an octet containing a rare Albanian rider, Eugert Zhupa of the Southeast team.

However, it wasn’t a good day for an escape, as the main players started skirmishing early. Last year’s winner Tom Boonen (Belgium/Etixx-QuickStep) and Sep Vanmarcke (Belgium/LottoNL-Jumbo)–both central characters in yesterday’s Omloop–initiated a move around the 80-km to go mark. A strong fifty-man group was further winnowed by Vanmarcke’s work over the Oude Kwaremont climb.

Boonen’s teammates Cavendish, the 2012 champion, and Zdeněk Štybar were accounted for in the 20-man bunch, as were Saturday’s Omloop winner Ian Stannard (Great Britain/Sky) and Alexander Kristoff (Norway/Katusha).

With 59-km remaining, the four fugitives remaining in front were gobbled up by the Boonen/Vanmarcke group. Forty-seconds behind, MTN-Qhubeka led the chase. Stannard showed his power on the final climb of the day, the Nokereberg with 50-km remaining.

Nothing but flat roads and winds remained. The chase edged closer as other teams like Wanty-Groupe Gobert, Cofidis and IAM came through to work with MTN-Qhubeka. The men in the lead group kept wary of the chase, with perhaps an eye to dart away before the junction with some strong riders. The junction was made with 35-km and two circuits around Kuurne to go.

Freewheeling through the finish line at the beginning of the first of two 15-km laps, the reformed peloton carried on drawing its breath for the attacks that might come. Katusha got down to business at the front but it was gruppo compacto entering the final lap.

Katusha kept at the sharp end of the spear but was joined by Sky. Etixx and MTN were lurking just behind. It was a tense peloton picking its way through Kuurne. After Sky took over at the 5.5-km mark, Philipe Gilbert (Belgium/BMC) bolted away. But the headwind was to thwart the Belgian. Lotto-Soudal snagged him with 800-metres remaining.

Kristoff led out, but Cavendish whipped around the Norwegian with 150-metres to go. Kristoff was runner-up and Elia Viviani (Italy/Sky) rounded out the podium.

It was another good race for Hugo Houle, who produced his Ag2r team’s best placing at 27th after 21st in the Omloop. Dominique Rollin (Cofidis) was 61st in the same group as Houle, 4-seconds down on the winner.

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