Welcome to Wanze for the Wanze-Arenburg semi-classic. The weather is looking surprisingly good for today, and the riders at the start line seem to be excited about the upcoming race.
The main teams that lead the chase have no riders in the break. At the moment Quickstep, Team Hornbach, Allianz-BMW Cycling Team and Gazelle share the workload in the chase.
The pack has organized its chase very well and when the twelve escapees hit the first cobbled section with just over 85km to go their lead has already decreased to 3m55.
The cobbled sections create two onslaughts. The first one is a split in the break, which Cataford, Bolivar, Boros, Kiflay, Lasca, Markus and Frame survive.
The second is created by the non-sprinter cobble teams Team Hornbach and Allianz-BMW Cycling Team, who not only narrow down the lead to the two escapees to just 2m25, but also have the pack shrunk to 80 riders, many almost broken already. However, we now have many kilometers of pure tarmac to come.
The race now slows down a bit, many riders rejoin the pack and the break regains its size of 12.
At the next cobbled sections it becomes apparent Team Hornbach is going all in for Franzoi today, as Veelers is helping out in the chase. On the two short cobbled sections and the short flat thereafter the size of the pack does decrease again though. It also shrinks the lead of the break to 1m40 with 40km to go.
With 30km to go the break seems to have a definitive split. Of the previous split only Frame didn't survive.
Just before the sequence of the 4 final cobbled sections starts, we finally have our first attacks from the pack. Franzoi and Thomas immediately make for a strong escape.
While the brit doesn't get away Franzoi does manage to set up a gap. He now reaches the 2nd chase, after the 3rd has been caught by the pack already.
In the pack the big guns pick up the chase themselves now, as currently Maes and Thomas are leasing the pack.
That doesn't stop Franzoi from catching the final 4 remainders of the early break. The 5 have a lead of 36s with 25km to go.
Thomas accelerates again! He leaves the pack behind, and joins Franzoi, who has dropped the early escapees. These 4 are reeled in by the pack.
Thomas doesn't feel like cooperating though and by the end of the second of 4 cobbled sections he attacks again, now heading for a solo lead.
Split in the pack! 8 riders get away and manage to join Franzoi, giving a 9-man chase consisting of the following: Franzoi, Lindeman, Veelers Gaudin Maes Baugnies, Steurs Nuyens Breschel
Main man missing out seems to be Eisel.
Maes and Franzoi accelerate again and leave the other 7 behind.
20s ahead of them Thomas heads into the final 20km on the penultimate cobbled section as first.
On the same section Machado attacks from the pack attempting to catch up with the 2nd group, as group-Franzoi has been caught again.
The pack now stops the chase and it seems like one of the 11 riders ahead will be the winner.
Coming off the penultimate cobbled section Thomas has stablized his lead. 1 section, 17km to go for him.
The chase is very unorganized, but it does appear as if Franzoi himself is the strongest of this group, which now consists of 10.
Thomas now increases his gap on the final section. Could this one be his?
It does appear to be so, as there seems to be an argument in the second group. Nobody is willing to chase and the gap soon increases to more than a minute.
The pack meanwhile is already over 5m down, and the winner is not inside this group.
Team Hornbach loses parts of its power in the second group, as both Veelers and Lindeman are dropped.
Attack in group 2! Baugnies has had enough of it and tries to break away.
However, Thomas heads off the cobbles and into the final 10km with a lead of 1m25.
Machado, Gaudin and Franzoi accelerate as well, although both Baugnies and Thomas are away already.
Franzoi and Gaudin can't get away and it seems like the podium is decided now.
Thomas ignores all chaos behind him and with 5km to go he still leads by over a minute.
A new attack from the 4th(!) group now, as Nuyens has jumped away.
Baugnies and Machado head into the final 5km as 2nd and 3rd. The Frenchman has been attempting to catch the Belgian for quite a while now, but hasn't managed to close the gap yet.
Nuyens also heads into the final 5km alone, just ahead of the chase, where Veelers and Lindeman have rejoined.
Thomas heads into the final km in order to obtain his well-deserved victory.
Over 1km behind the battle for 2nd has just become a lot more exciting, as 2nd and 3rd place, Baugnies and Machado are now together.
For the 4th group 4th place is still in sight, as Nuyens is not very far away. The 7 riders immediately try to sprint towards him.
However, this is the man of the day. Geraint Thomas takes an impressive victory in the 2014 Wanze-Arenberg.
In sprint for second Machado can't get closer to Baugnies, who seems to be heading for second.
Nuyens still has a good gap heading for the final km and it looks like he'll take 4th.
In the sprint for 5th it's surprisingly Steurs who has the highest pace. Can he get 5th?
His team mate Baugnies gets second at least, Machado comes 3rd.
Breschel has broken free now and seems to be heading for 5th, but even Nuyens is close now.
Not close enough though, as he takes 4th. Breschel comes 5th, Steurs 6th.
Team Hornbach duo Veelers and Lindeman come 7th and 8th, ahead of Gaudin, Maes and Franzoi.
More than 12 minutes after the winner the pack passes the line. The sprint for 12th is won by Steegmans ahead of Eisel.
