Cyclingflash
Dylan Groenewegen takes second win for the Rockets in Bredene Koksijde Classic

Dylan Groenewegen takes second win for the Rockets in Bredene Koksijde Classic

Dylan Groenewegen has won the Bredene Koksijde Classic. After more than 200 kilometers of racing, the Unibet Rose Rockets rider struck in a bunch sprint following well-executed team tactics. This marks the second victory for the Dutchman with the Rockets. 

On Friday, the Bredene Koksijde Classic was the next Belgian semi-classic on the calendar. In West Flanders, a mass sprint was expected, although last year’s defending champion Edward Theuns won the race after a thrilling finish. The Belgian escaped from the peloton in the hilly section together with riders like Nils Eekhoff, Vito Braet, and Luke Lamperti, and held on until the finish.

This Friday, the hilly terrain, featuring two ascents of the Baneberg, one of Monteberg, and two of the Kemmelberg, was again expected to play a key role in the Bredene Koksijde Classic.

When the peloton entered the hilly zone with 130 kilometers to go, a breakaway featuring Max Kroonen, Gianni Marchand, and Victor Vercouillie still held several minutes’ advantage. However, their lead quickly started to dwindle approaching the final climb of the Kemmelberg, just over 100 kilometers from the finish.

On the Kemmelberg we saw multiple attacks. Among others, Braet—who was in the decisive breakaway last year—and Dries De Bondt tried to get away but couldn’t escape the peloton, which was steadily reeling in the day’s escapees, including the Dutchman and the two Belgians.

In the following phase toward the Moeren, the race became interesting again. With 87 kilometers remaining, Yorben Lauryssen and Warren Vangheluwe managed to bridge to the early breakaway, soon followed by a group of ten. This group included strong contenders like Yves Lampaert, Roel van Sintmaartensdijk, Max Walscheid, Luka Mezgec, and Frits Biesterbos, who hoped to make it into the finale of the Bredene Koksijde Classic.

New breakaway group granted space in the pre-final
However, the peloton did not let the large group get away. At Moeren, everything came back together and several echelons formed. With less than 70 kilometers to go, Gil Gelders, Henrik Pedersen, Cedric Beullens, Rayan Boulahoite, Jelle Vermoote, and Michiel Coppens succeeded in breaking away from the peloton.

This was favorable for the race’s general rhythm: the peloton, led by UAE Emirates XRG for Juan Sebastian Molano, could then set the pace at the front to keep the six-man breakaway in check. The six expanded their lead to about a minute, but no more. Thus, the finale became a cat-and-mouse game between the breakaway and the peloton, which ultimately caught the breakaway. In the closing kilometers, Pedersen attempted a late attack but was also reeled in just over one kilometer from the finish.

So the sprint was set in Koksijde. In the final kilometers, we saw the Unibet Rose Rockets lead-out train positioned well near the front of the peloton, allowing Groenewegen to launch his sprint in the last 250 meters. In Koksijde, he delivered a strong finish ahead of Pascal Ackermann and Pavel Bittner.