Jonas Abrahamsen still has his Tour de France legs and holds off in-form rival in Belgium

While racing was taking place all across Europe on Friday, including in the Czech Republic and Denmark, the focus in Belgium was on this one-day event. With seven WorldTour teams and several strong Pro Continental squads at the start line, the Circuit Franco-Belge could not complain about the strong field.

Right from the start, five riders broke away: Ludovic Robeet (Cofidis), Tom Portsmouth (Wagner Bazin), Jonathan Vervenne (Soudal Quick-Step), Mats Omloop (VolkerWessels), and Gianni Marchand (Tarteletto). These five animated the early hours of racing.

In the peloton, Alpecin-Deceuninck and Israel–Premier Tech took control, knowing they had fast finishers like Kaden Groves and Corbin Strong waiting in the wings. Lotto Dstny also lent a hand during the race, with Arnaud De Lie among their ranks as a key contender.

With 60 kilometers to go, Jonas Abrahamsen (Uno-X) lit the match that sparked the finale. Arnaud De Lie immediately jumped on his wheel, while riders like Kaden Groves already began to struggle. In that sense, Abrahamsen’s move served its purpose, because once he was reeled back in, Uno-X took control of the race.

With 30 kilometers left, Abrahamsen was on the attack again. This time, he was joined by his future teammate Martin Tjotta (Arkéa), Xandro Meurisse (Alpecin-Deceuninck), and Jonas Geens (Sport Vlaanderen-Baloise). A later acceleration dropped both Tjotta and Geens, while Fabio Christen (Q36.5) jumped across in the final lap.

This new trio worked well together, right up until the rising final kilometer loomed ahead. At that point, a group containing Markus Hoelgaard (Uno-X), Joe Blackmore (Israel–Premier Tech), Dylan Teuns (Cofidis), and Rick Pluimers (Tudor) managed to catch up, followed shortly by the rest of the peloton a few seconds later.

Up front, it was Hoelgaard who kicked things off, forcing a response from both Christen and teammate Abrahamsen. With 400 meters to go, Abrahamsen launched one last burst, and it proved just enough to stay ahead of the sprinters on the line.