LIÈGE-BASTOGNE-LIÈGE : INFO WITH ONE DAY TO GO
April 22 nd 2023 - 19:27
Key points:
· The 109th Liège-Bastogne-Liège will have the winners of both last two editions of the race on its start line as Tadej Pogacar and Remco Evenepoel are the main favorites for victory. They are yet to race each other this year, which make theirs a much-anticipated duel.
· The inclusion of a new version of La Redoute and the comeback of the Côte des Forges in the final kilometres of the race open up further options for an outsider to surprise - or for a favorite to claim the race by storm.
· All riders who have been close to Tadej Pogacar in these Ardennes classics are entering Liège-Bastogne-Liège – Mattias Skjelmose Jensen (2nd in La Flèche Wallonne), Mikel Landa (3rd in Flèche), Ben Healy (2nd in Flèche) and Tom Pidcock (3rd in Amstel Gold Race). And we shouldn’t count out Alexander Vlasov, Romain Bardet or Michael Woods either.
Jean-Michel Monin: “Long-range attacks are trending”
The 2023 Liège-Bastogne-Liège will have a 258,1-kilometre course, starting and finishing in Liège’s Quai des Ardennes with the obvious turning point being Bastogne. Once the riders roll through this town at kilometer 97, they will face 10 out of the 11 listed climbs. There have been some tweaks, though. For starters, the trilogy of côtes with Wanne, Stockeu and Haute-Levée is back on the menu. “There were works on the roads and they are finished now, and this has enabled us to bring this string of climbs back, as well as the côte de la Mont-le-Soie right before Wanne.” Furthermore, the côte de Cornémont is featuring right after a new, shorter version of La Redoute. “Even if the summit of the côte de Cornémont is at the same altitude as La Redoute, this climb will make the race tougher as it will come after a short, technical downhill. Riders won’t have time to catch their breath. Besides, taking this road enables us to include the côte des Forges, a place that is part of the history of this race. It’s the ideal scenario for long-range attacks, which are seemingly trending in cycling right now.”
Tadej Pogacar: “I’m not going to focus on Remco alone”
Fresh off adding La Flèche Wallonne to a long tally of victories including Amstel Gold Race, the Tour of Flanders or Paris-Nice only in 2023, Tadej Pogacar is one of the main favorites for this Liège Bastogne-Liège. He actually fancies La Doyenne, which he won in 2021 after standing on the podium the year before. “It’s one of the races I reckoned that I can do well at since my first season as a pro,” points the Slovenian rider with a smile. How he likes the new course? “It is harder than the previous one. I think it is possible that the race opens up early, as Cornémont comes quite fast after La Redoute. It will be a war of attrition, as always.” Everyone is talking about his duel with Remco Evenepoel. “But every team comes to a Monument with at least one guy who can win the race,” counters the UAE Team Emirates rider. “Remco and I haven’t raced each other too much so far, yet we have a great deal of respect for each other. I’m not going to focus on Remco alone.” Pogacar did also give a hint on his squad’s tactics for the day. “It will be all eyes on UAE again, and we will have to control the break. With the strong team we have, we can do it again – like in Amstel or Flèche. If it’s possible for us, we will make the race hard on the climbs after 150 kilometres.” And, finally, a conclusion: “We can have a proper race.”
Remco Evenepoel: “Legs will do the talking”
There is this stat playing in Remco Evenepoel’s favor: every rider who has taken the start in Liège-Bastogne-Liège sporting both the rainbow jersey and the #1 bib has claimed victory in La Doyenne. It was the case for Ferdi Kübler (1952), Eddy Merckx (1972) and Moreno Argentin (1987). Anyway, the Soudal-Quick Step rider is placing all his faith on the present and on his recent training camp in Tenerife. “It’s true I haven’t raced for a long time, but my main goal of this season is the Giro d’Italia and last year, when I focused in La Vuelta, we took the same approach by returning to racing in the Clasica de San Sebastian – and it worked out quite well!” Like in Donosti, Tadej Pogacar will be featuring in the start line. “What he [Tadej] has done this spring has been outstanding and deserves my highest regard. He is an amazing talent, and a great champion.” Admiration doesn’t translate into submission, though. “I like how the course has changed, as La Redoute gets even more difficult. It shifts strategies, as there will be tailwind and the race could break open as soon as in Bastogne. In the end, legs will do the talking. It’s the most beautiful of all Classics, in my opinion, and I have one clear goal: victory.”
Tom Pidcock: “Tadej Pogacar makes me a better rider”
Despite an underwhelming 18th place at the finish, Tom Pidcock finds the positive in his performance at La Flèche Wallonne. “I felt good and comfortable during the race, even if I dug pretty deep during Amstel Gold Race,” he says. “We messed up a bit in the approach to the Mur de Huy and I came from pretty far back in the final. I put pretty decent numbers, but I was done with 400 meters to go. It is a shame, yet I am confident I can win Flèche in the future.” The British rider is set to lead Ineos Grenadiers this Sunday in Liège-Bastogne-Liège. His relationship with La Doyenne has not been a love affair so far, as he had to pull out last-minute due to an injury in 2021 and found his performance hampered last year by a huge pile up with 59,5 kilometres to go. Coming into this edition, the main challenge for him is the length of the course - 258,1 kilometres. “I have struggled with distance in other Classics, like Flanders and Amstel. It sticks in my mind a little bit, but we can’t let it haunt me.” As for the main favorite, Tadej Pogacar, he had a flattering statement: “Tadej is the best rider in the world right now. Every time I race against him, he makes me a better rider. He is the standard that me, and everyone else in the bunch, need to achieve at this moment.”
Romain Bardet: “Let’s make it a friendly separation”
He might not be a top contender – but he can well be a factor. Romain Bardet has four top10s in Liège-Bastogne-Liège, including one podium in 2018 (3rd). He netted all of them back when the race finished in Ans – a finale that, in his opinion, better suited his qualities. “Ever since they moved the finish to Liège, I’m trying to divorce from this race – but, you know, let’s make it a friendly separation,” jokes the Frenchman, who found good vibes in the Mur de Huy as he was 9th after putting in quite a dig. “I hadn’t been able to influence any race this season until Wednesday. It felt like finding my raison d’être. I didn’t have any expectations coming into La Flèche Wallonne, yet I felt good legs and tried to surprise and upset my rivals.” Can he pull off a similar performance in Liège? “It’s hard to say. It will be difficult for me if the main group is still 15-strong atop the Roche-aux-Faucons, as I will find it hard to make a difference afterwards. Even playing for the 3rd place behind Tadej and Remco would be a tough ask in that scenario.”
Mattias Skjelmose: “Our goal is the podium, and I think it is a realistic one”
The savviest of the cycling fans had probably spotted Mattias Skjelmose already in the junior ranks, or even this season as he won stages in the Etoile de Besseges and the Tour des Alpes Maritimes et du Var. The general audience, though, only noticed him this Wednesday when he was the runner-up to Tadej Pogacar in La Flèche Wallonne. That performance alone qualifies him as an outsider for this Liège-Bastogne-Liège. “My shape is very good and I’m looking forward to race,” says the Danish rider. “I think the changes on the course are really good for the race, as it will be harder and more exciting. The groups are going to be smaller than in previous years.” With a remarkable field including Pogacar and Evenepoel, what is his best shot to claim a good result? “Being at the front, like everybody else’s. If Tadej and Remco decide to go, I hope they catch me after the Roche-aux-Faucons.” And what would be the goal for him and his Trek-Segafredo team? “Making it to the podium. And I think it is a realistic one.”