INEOS dominates more than just the Giro — Schmidt leaves sprinters powerless in nearly new Classique Dunkerque

It was only the second edition of the French one-day race, after the organizers changed course last year. They had noticed that teams were favoring one-day races, where more UCI points were up for grabs. The Classique Dunkerque was born, and the subsequent Four Days of Dunkirk was—contrary to what the name suggests—shortened from six to five stages.

Let’s take a look at the start list, which was well-stocked thanks to the race’s 1.Pro status. No fewer than ten WorldTour teams were present, though neither Visma | Lease a Bike nor UAE Emirates-XRG were among them. The search was on for a successor to Pascal Ackermann, who won this race last year.

The 202-kilometer course between the start in Dunkirk and the finish in Mont-Saint-Eloi wasn’t entirely flat, but it was still expected to be a race for the sprinters. Pretty soon, it was Axel Mariault, Jonas Walton (both CIC), and Léandre Huck (Van Rysel Roubaix) who formed the breakaway of the day.

The peloton saw little danger in this, and so the trio gained a lead of over five minutes. In a very classic race scenario, that lead steadily diminished, and with 46 kilometers to go, it was all over for Walton in the breakaway group. The Canadian unfortunately suffered a flat tire and had to let his two French breakaway companions go.

With 26 kilometers to go, it was also over for Huck, leaving Mariault to ride it out on his own. The peloton had picked up the pace, however, and from there Schmidt decided to launch an attack. The INEOS rider broke away on his own with 9 kilometers to go, setting the stage for a thrilling finale.

Schmidt immediately opened up a big gap, and suddenly it looked like it was going to be very difficult for the sprinters and their teams. Too difficult, as it turned out, since the American managed to stay out of the peloton’s grasp. It was his second pro victory, after becoming the U.S. time trial champion last year.