Hagenes times his attack to perfection to claim dusty Antwerp Port Epic victory

The Antwerp Port Epic was won on Monday by Per Strand Hagenes. The Norwegian of Visma | Lease a Bike proved the strongest and smartest rider in a thrilling race that truly lived up to its name. Across the unpaved sections, he was the sharpest attacker in the elite group and timed his move to perfection. Pau Miquel (Bahrain Victorious) finished second, with Dries De Bondt (Jayco AlUla) third .

The women had set the tone on Sunday when SD Worx-Protime's Femke Markus took the victory. The Dutchwoman rode away from the lead group at precisely the right moment in an exciting race and was never seen again. That was a warning to the men: a sprint was far from guaranteed.

On paper, you might have expected one, given that the 192.4-kilometre course is entirely flat. But those in the know are well aware that the Antwerp Port Epic is famous for its gravel and cobbled sections, which always promised another fantastic afternoon of racing.

In a fairly unsettled opening phase, there were some punctures and unfortunately a few crashes, but no breakaway formed. It was not for lack of trying — riders made attempts here and there. Even with 90 kilometres already raced, the peloton was still virtually intact.

Three riders briefly got away: Pau Martí (NSN), Victor Van de Putte (Lotto-Intermarché) and Marvin Peters (EEW-VDK). But they were given little room, as the pace in the bunch was high. With 50 kilometres to go, the front group had trimmed to around 50 riders. Shortly after, Pau Miquel (Bahrain Victorious) made his move.

He opened a gap, and a pursuit group quickly formed. In it: Dries De Bondt (Jayco AlUla), Per Strand Hagenes (Visma | Lease a Bike), Martin Švrcek (Soudal Quick-Step), Toon Vandebosch (Alpecin-Premier Tech), Brent Van Moer (Pinarello Q36.5), Ward Vanhoof (Flanders-Baloise), Sandy Dujardin (TotalEnergies) and Van de Putte again. They joined Miquel: nine strong riders at the front .

That soon became eight when Vandebosch suffered a puncture. After a while, the group was back to nine — but not thanks to the returning Belgian: Alexis Renard (Cofidis) had bridged the gap alone. A fine effort from the Frenchman, who made the junction with 30 kilometres to go. The group had roughly 50 seconds on the peloton, which had a tough job closing it down.

Soudal Quick-Step and Alpecin-Premier Tech tried to close the gap nonetheless. Quick-Step had Švrcek up front but sprinter Tim Merlier in the bunch, and preferred to bank on their top favourite. The gap came down somewhat. With 12 kilometres to go it was 30 seconds, and Hagenes did not like the look of it. He attacked on a bridge.

He brought the worst possible companion in Švrcek, who was not going to work. The pair were reeled back in, but it was the cheeky Švrcek himself who then attacked. The Visma | Lease a Bike rider closed it down: the two of them seemed the strongest at the front, but everything was still extremely tight. The chasers behind brought it back together once more.

With five kilometres to go, the race went quiet. Everyone was waiting for attacks, and they came thick and fast — but the riders in the lead group were giving each other no room at all. Van Moer chose a clever moment to accelerate and brought Hagenes with him. The Norwegian then countered in the final kilometre, just staying ahead of De Bondt and Miquel in a breathless finish.