“We’re practically living at the Koppenberg”: Uno-X eye Tour of Flanders and Roubaix top five after strong campaign

Wærenskjold himself was understandably pleased with third place. “It’s nice to make the podium. I was a bit disappointed with the start of my classics campaign, so it feels really good to get this podium. During Opening Weekend I felt very bad. In Bruges it was already better, but I couldn’t contest the sprint there,” said the Norwegian, who finished fourteenth on that occasion.

Things came together much better in Waregem. “It was a fast race and I just tried to survive. I had good legs, but they weren’t amazing. I tried to race smart and save as much energy as possible for the sprint. Actually, I thought I was too far back coming out of the final corner, but luckily there was enough room for me to launch my sprint.”

Van Den Oudenhove also saw Jonas Abrahamsen, who had already finished fifth in E3 and ninth in In Flanders Fields last weekend, deliver again. “But actually, our race didn’t go that well. We only had two riders in that front group, but they were the right two riders. We also went with a younger line-up because we wanted to save some of our men for Sunday.”

The other five Uno-X riders did not make it to the finish. “But Abrahamsen was there every time on the climbs, where you keep seeing the same names at the front. Wærenskjold was then able to follow the other sprinters and we knew he could still go a long way in that sprint. That proved to be true, even if it would have been even nicer had it been for the win.”

“But we’re satisfied,” the sports director continued. “Abrahamsen is among the best riders in the race, in that group just behind Van der Poel and Pogačar. So we are in the fight, and Jonas just needs to keep building. Everything is starting to come together: the strength, but certainly also the knowledge of how to approach these Flemish races.”

“Those Norwegians weren’t born here, but they are starting to understand how these races unfold. Make no mistake, these are very specific races,” Van Den Oudenhove explained. “We’re practically living at the foot of the Koppenberg during these weeks, so every metre we ride from there adds something to that learning process.”

After strong results in E3, In Flanders Fields and Dwars door Vlaanderen, Uno-X are now preparing for the Monuments. “I’m hoping for a top-five finish in the Tour of Flanders with Abrahamsen,” he said without hesitation. “And Abra will also ride Paris-Roubaix, but there I expect more from Wærenskjold. He already finished ninth there in 2024, and last year he was in the mix again until he crashed at Carrefour de l’Arbre.”