BINCKBANK TOUR 2019 – STAGE 2 PREVIEW

The classic BinckBank circuit finish in Ardooie.

The Route:

Stage 2 is another panflat stage. There are cobbled sections in Ichtigem at around 2/3rd of the stage, but it is expected that there will be a group sprint at the finish line in Ardooie for victory.

The last 4 kilometers contain a few tricky spots where a rider could escape. The most notable one is the ciccane at 1100 meters from the finish line. This was the place where Stuyven attacked last year to win the stage just meters ahead of the peloton.

The Race:

Not much has to be said about how today’s stage will play out. The teams will keep the breakaway under control and reel them back in before the Golden Kilometer sprint with 27 km to go to the finish line. Depending on the weather, we might see a fast and dangerous finale with hopefully no casualties, after which the sprinters will fight for the win unless someone manages to pull-off a late-attack.

Weather:

Another rainy day! With a moderate tail wind in the final kilometers, which should be grist to the mill for the weaker sprinters that are looking for a late attack opportunity. Still, given the strength of the teams of the stronger sprinters, it will take a very, very strong showing to arrive solo.

The Favorites:

Dylan Groenewegen
Seemed very tired both yesterday during the European Road Championships and today during the first stage. There was something really weird going on with him and Teunissen as Mike Teunissen seemingly went for own glory. Did Groenewegen not have the legs and did he instruct Teunissen to go for himself? His reaction at the finish line did not seem to suggest so, but he tweeted that a lead-out Trek rider made it impossible for him to sprint. Still, Teunissen seems to be limping on two thoughts since his yellow jersey and his sprint stage win at the Tour de France, and things will have to be sorted out very quickly if they want to take a shot at succes.

Sam Bennett
Easily won today. By far the strongest and smartest sprinter in this race.

Arnaud Demare
Crashed and did not contest the sprint today. Will probably not be challenging for the win tomorrow because of this.

Edward Theuns
Launched a bit early today, still manage to get an impressive second place. Will probably ride into another bunch of top10’s in the coming days.

Jasper Philipsen
Did not win despite a good leadout. Will challenge for podium but seems to lack the kick for the win.

Alvaro Hodeg
Didn’t seriously challenge today, don’t expect him to seriously challenge tomorrow. Quickstep does not have the best sprinter, but they do have the best team: tomorrow could be another Quickstep tactical masterpiece and an impressive win by either Stybar, Gilbert or Jungels, who can power away in the final of the stage and stay away until the finish line to grab a stage-win and bonification seconds.
Of these three Bob Jungels should be the most suited for this type of tactic. He was so strong in Poland that he accidentily disrupted Quickstep’s lead-out train multiple times by riding so hard that the other Quickstep riders couldn’t hold his wheel, and getting a bonification lead will strengthen his position as GC contender within the team.

Outsiders: Halvorsen, Bauhaus, Mareczko, Dupont

The Winner:

The strongest sprinter in the race will win tomorrow in typically Irish weather: Sam Bennett for his second stage-win.

Betting wise we will also be backing Jungels for a late attack at favourable odds, you can find all our bets on our Twitter Page.