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Kuurne-Bruxelles-Kuurne Discussion
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| Ad Bot |
Posted on 27-10-2026 23:03
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| redordead |
Posted on 27-10-2026 07:33
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Team Leader
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Welcome to the 16th edition of the Kuurne-Bruxelles-Kuurne one day race. Not counting races in the PTHC category this serves as the 3rd cobbled classic for the PCT division. It's not the most difficult cobbled classic given its medium length, a long flat sector towards the finish and not too many kilometres of cobbles. But the riders do usually make it hard with how they race it. Expect plenty of attacks before the finish and we'll see if any of them stick or we'll see a sprint contested by the top cobbled specialists.
With that in mind let's look at some of the favourites:
| FL | HI | ST | RS | CB | SP | AC |  Girmay | 77 | 71 | 76 | 76 | 81 | 77 | 76 |  Per | 79 | 70 | 74 | 75 | 82 | 74 | 74 |  Ovsyannikov | 74 | 69 | 75 | 72 | 80 | 79 | 78 |  Gamper | 77 | 67 | 77 | 77 | 81 | 64 | 71 |  Rutsch | 77 | 69 | 76 | 75 | 79 | 69 | 68 |  Jacobs | 76 | 69 | 77 | 76 | 79 | 67 | 68 |  Spengler | 74 | 67 | 74 | 73 | 83 | 62 | 70 |  Stewart | 77 | 72 | 74 | 77 | 76 | 76 | 71 |  Rossi | 78 | 70 | 75 | 74 | 77 | 68 | 69 |
The preview has been written before the first few cobbled races, but my expectations is that we see Girmay vs Per fighting for the top spot in the majority of races. Per is the stronger all around rider, but Girmay is also strong and has a great sprint at the end of races. The other two riders that look the most likely to get in between the two main favourites are Ovsyannikov and Gamper. The former is the best sprinter in any cobbled race which makes him a threat if that's how the race finishes. Gamper on the other hand is a powerful rider. You don't really fancy him in a sprint, but he can certainly make a big impact whenever he goes on the attack.
With the 2nd line of favourites I think it's harder to see them go for the win, but if the top guys underperform then a spot on the podium is still perfectly reasonable. Rutsch and Jacobs are both very capable and we should see them in the group of favourites. Spengler tends to flatter to deceive given his top CB stat, but lower FL and ST along with one with the worst SP stats usually work against him when competing for the podium spots. Stewart brings a varied skill set with a good sprint, but based on the CB stat alone he's definitely more of a wildcard. Finally there is Rossi who I am a fan of. I like a high FL stat and he's well balanced in general.
| FL | HI | ST | RS | CB | SP | AC | | Bohli | 74 | 68 | 79 | 75 | 77 | 74 | 68 | | Pithie | 74 | 72 | 76 | 74 | 77 | 73 | 74 |  Schreurs | 72 | 67 | 75 | 75 | 77 | 72 | 71 | | Kuroeda | 74 | 63 | 72 | 73 | 77 | 74 | 78 |  Lampawog | 76 | 68 | 76 | 75 | 77 | 64 | 68 |  Kalf | 72 | 66 | 76 | 74 | 75 | 73 | 70 | | Uhlig | 72 | 65 | 72 | 74 | 78 | 65 | 75 |  Wisniowski | 76 | 67 | 69 | 70 | 79 | 69 | 70 |  Ariesen | 75 | 68 | 74 | 73 | 75 | 70 | 71 |  Owen | 73 | 69 | 73 | 71 | 78 | 64 | 71 |  Hvideberg | 78 | 70 | 74 | 74 | 76 | 65 | 65 |  Ulloa | 72 | 70 | 73 | 72 | 77 | 68 | 68 |  Heinrich | 70 | 60 | 70 | 77 | 76 | 67 | 73 |  Orue | 69 | 64 | 77 | 70 | 78 | 53 | 58 |  Sweeck | 72 | 67 | 69 | 70 | 75 | 69 | 69 |
Bohli and Pithie would have made the top table had they not had an even better rider to work for. Schreurs has shown multiple times that he's capable of a very good result. I think Kuroeda is a better leader than domestique, but he'll be important for Spengler. I like Lampawog's energy to stick with the favourites, but he needs good positioning to make for lower SP/AC. Kalf and Uhlig gives Rohan a nice varied option of a stronger cobbler and better sprinter although Kalf does have the better ST also. Wisniowski is a real mystery to me if I'm honest. Great CB and FL which is important and his speed is still solid, but that ST and RS combo is rough.
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| Laurens147 |
Posted on 27-10-2026 07:58
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Sprinter
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Thanks red for the preview! 
Hoping for some depth points from Ariesen. And for the rest, just enjoy the show between the top favourites!
MG - Lotto - Caloi
[MG] New Manager of the Year - PCM.daily Awards 2022
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| cunego59 |
Posted on 27-10-2026 08:07
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Team Manager
Posts: 6795
Joined: 14-09-2008
PCM$: 1290.00
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KBK was Bini's second best race last year when he finished 2nd. It's our second win goal this year, and just like in OHN the goal is at least a podium. OHN turned out really poorly, so I'm hoping this will be better.
Thanks for the preview red!
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| Fabianski |
Posted on 27-10-2026 08:36
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Team Leader
Posts: 5529
Joined: 29-09-2018
PCM$: 185.00
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Very kind to put Stewart in the list of favourites, but sadly I'd rather expect him to either be completely anonymous and miss out on a decisive split, or to waste his energy on another useless mid-range attack. The only good strategy would be to sit in the front third of the peloton and then rock the bunch sprint, and I'd happily take that - but from what I've seen last year and in Omloop, I'm not very confident sadly 
Good luck to all, thanks for the preview!
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| AbhishekLFC |
Posted on 27-10-2026 11:34
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Directeur Sportif
Posts: 13437
Joined: 27-07-2015
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More of the same as in Omloop from Lampawog will do fine. Hoping for some more depth points though.
Thanks for the preview red
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| sammyt93 |
Posted on 27-10-2026 13:13
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Classics Specialist
Posts: 3961
Joined: 03-07-2012
PCM$: 300.00
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Looking for a top 10 here and anything better will be a bonus
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| Caspi |
Posted on 27-10-2026 14:21
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Protected Rider
Posts: 1141
Joined: 22-09-2022
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Can Owen get another sneaky top 10?
The rest of the team can aim for the breakaway or enjoy the show alongside Lotto - Caloi
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| TheManxMissile |
Posted on 27-10-2026 18:23
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Tour de France Champion
Posts: 18089
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You can tell the preview was pre-Omloop 
Not expecting Spengler to pull rabbits from hats consistently, but here's a great test to see where the hierarchy really lies. Plus some mop-up points for Kuroeda would do nicely.
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| Gustavovskiy |
Posted on 27-10-2026 19:04
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Team Leader
Posts: 6406
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The cream of the division is here so expect a good race. Hopefully Schreurs keeps his good form to land a top15 here. Girmay and Ovsianikov should be strong candidates here. Curious to see who Takes the cake.
thanks for the preview red!
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| Marcovdw |
Posted on 27-10-2026 20:07
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Grand Tour Champion
Posts: 8009
Joined: 04-07-2012
PCM$: 25645.00
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Thanks for the preview. Looking forward to see if we make the top 50
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| Heine |
Posted on 27-10-2026 20:44
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Grand Tour Specialist
Posts: 5142
Joined: 08-04-2007
PCM$: 200.00
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I dont expect Rutsch to win, just continue scoring consistently. Then I am happy
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