Hello everybody and welcome to the Netherlands for the Rheden GP! This race goes back all the way to 2014, when Nick Nuyens celebrated victory for Gazelle. Since then, no rider has been able to win more than once here, with most recent victors being Mads Pedersen, Lukasz Wisniowski and Danny Summerhill. That already tells us what to expect here, cobbles! Let's have a look at the profile.
See, I didn't lie. It has to be said that it isn't always a pure cobbler winning here either, as for example in 2020 Kristoffer Halvorsen was victorious here. Let's take a look at the best cobblers in the race.
Fla
Sta
Res
Cob
Spr
Acc
Spengler
74
74
73
83
62
70
Zepuntke
72
79
72
82
72
65
Anderberg
78
77
76
82
60
73
Altur
75
75
70
82
72
68
Van Hooydonck
73
75
74
82
61
72
Gerts
76
75
79
81
71
69
Kasperkiewicz
76
75
77
81
59
67
Gamper
77
77
77
80
64
71
Teunissen
75
76
72
80
66
68
Girmay
77
76
76
79
77
76
Sulimov
72
75
69
78
64
69
Ferreira
72
72
68
78
70
67
Moulingui
74
71
71
78
65
68
With the biggest classic rivals not being here, is this the perfect opportunity for a rider like Spengler or Zepuntke? They still need to beat some other big cobblers to make it happen though, but this might be one of their biggest chances of the season for a really big result.
This race has not always been the most selective, so if a smaller group of strong cobblers make it to the finish line together, the cards seem to be most fit for riders like Girmay, and in a lesser extent for Altur and Gerts as well.
In case we're back at a Halvorsen scenario, some other riders come into the picture to be victorious here as well. Here's a list of sprinters decent or even good on the cobbles as well.
RR Image Code
Flat
Stamina
Resistance
Cobbles
Sprint
Acceleration
Nommela
72
70
70
73
78
78
Garcia Cortina
76
76
72
74
77
76
Jimenez Retana
71
69
68
70
77
79
Stewart
77
74
77
76
76
71
Sarreau
75
74
76
72
76
76
Räim
74
73
72
71
76
75
McLay
72
73
71
71
76
75
Lauk
78
71
70
70
76
76
Vahtra
72
75
73
76
75
72
Let's find out tomorrow if any of these guys can cause an upset. Good luck to all!
Despite having a solid sprint, I still hope to see a somewhat selective race, to make sure Altur stays in front. He has Stavrakakis and Cavagna here as domestiques, I hope that will be enough, as the other top domestiques are trying their own elsewhere.