Del Grosso was mistaken for Del Toro — and judging by his Strava file, it’s not hard to see why

The Flemish spring was never on Del Toro’s schedule, although UAE have been known to do unusual things in the past. So the Mexican’s name on the provisional E3 start list quickly made waves. It was picked up in Mexico and South America as well, but after a bit of searching, the mistake was quickly found.

Isaac del Toro will not be travelling to Belgium on Friday, but Tibor del Grosso will. The Dutchman from Alpecin-Premier Tech will line up alongside Mathieu van der Poel. UAE, meanwhile, have Florian Vermeersch, Rui Oliveira, Mikkel Bjerg, Luca Giaimi, Rune Herregodts, Nils Politt and Antonio Morgado on their list.

So, no Del Toro, but Del Grosso also looks set to arrive at the start of E3 with excellent legs. During an Alpecin-Premier Tech reconnaissance ride on Tuesday — with Van der Poel also part of the group — the pace was extremely high in several sections.

How fast? Well, during the recon Del Grosso set personal records on the Eikenberg and Rotelenberg, but it was especially his ride up the Paterberg that made jaws drop. The 350-metre climb at an average gradient of 13.4 percent was blasted by Del Grosso in just 47 seconds. Could Del Toro have done that as well?

The effort was not enough for the Strava KOM, which has belonged since 2021 to Jens Vanden Heede, who did it in 44 seconds. But Del Grosso still posted the second-fastest time ever on Tuesday, at an average speed of 26.7 kilometres per hour and an average power output of 854 watts. Maximum: 1,096 watts.

After the Paterberg, Del Grosso did not do anything too crazy, but it is clear that he, together with Alpecin-Premier Tech and Van der Poel, has made E3 a real target. ‘Never a dull moment on Alpecin reconnaissance rides,’ he wrote alongside his Strava upload. The full training ride totalled 133.8 kilometres and 1,477 metres of elevation, good for 3 hours and 42 minutes in — and out of — the saddle.

Alongside E3, we will also see Del Grosso in Dwars door Vlaanderen this spring. After that, the focus shifts mainly to the climbing classics, with the semi-classics NXT Classic and the Ronde van Limburg on his programme. He will also ride Brabantse Pijl and the Amstel Gold Race.