Trentin wins Paris-Tours for second time in three years

Matteo Trentin (Quick-Step Floors) continued his superb season by winning the 111th edition of the fall one-day classic Paris-Tours on Sunday in Tours, France. It was Trentin’s second Paris-Tours win in three years and Quick-Step’s third in a row after Colombian Fernando Gaviria triumphed last year. The win was a goodbye and thank you of sorts to Quick-Step Floors, as Trentin will ride for Orica-Scott next year.

Quick-Step Floors took advantage of their numerical advantage in the finale of the 234.5km race, attacking and having Trentin and Niki Terpstra in a three-man breakaway that would survive to the finish.

Trentin was easily able to outsprint Søren Andersen (Team Sunweb) on the line to take the win and create a three-peat of wins for Quick-Step Floors in the race. Terpstra secured third and Andre Greipel (Lotto Soudal) brought home a select chase group less than 10 seconds later to capture fourth.

“The light rain and wet roads made for a strung out bunch, so on the first hill, I said to myself it won’t hurt to give it a go,” Trentin said. “A first group formed, but then I went again and Niki came across. We played perfect tactics and Niki did an incredible work and a provided a superb lead-out in the last kilometer.

“It’s fantastic to end the season in such a manner, I want to thank Quick-Step Floors for these seven years, it was an honor to ride with them and I’m proud of bringing down the curtain on my time here with a second victory in Paris-Tours.”

Quick-Step Floors ended the race with four riders in the top-10.

Top-10

• 1. Matteo Trentin, QUICK – STEP FLOORS, in 5:22:51
• 2. Søren Kragh Andersen, TEAM SUNWEB, at :00
• 3. Niki Terpstra, QUICK – STEP FLOORS, at :01
• 4. André Greipel, LOTTO SOUDAL, at :07
• 5. Maximiliano Ariel Richeze, QUICK – STEP FLOORS, at :07
• 6. Oliver Naesen, AG2R LA MONDIALE, at :07
• 7. Yves Lampaert, QUICK – STEP FLOORS, at :07
• 8. Andrea Pasqualon, WANTY – GROUPE GOBERT, at :07
• 9. Mike Teunissen, TEAM SUNWEB, at :07
• 10. Jean-Pierre Drucker, BMC RACING TEAM, at :07

Brou hosted the start of the fall semi-classic for the first time in history and 172 riders set-off for Tours under a grey sky and mild temperature. First held in 1896, the semi-classic is usually held the week before Il Lombardia, but in 2017 the race occurred the day after the final monument of the season. The 234.5km route to Tours was flat for the first 200km, but the road became rolling in the last 35km. The final 10km included the Côte de Beau-Soleil and Côte de l’Epan, which provided opportunities for those not with the high-end speed of the sprinters a chance to get away.

A five-rider breakaway containing Lawrence Naesen (WB Veranclassica Quality Protect), Michael Goolaerts (Veranda’s Willems-Crelan), Brian Van Goethem (Roompot-Nederlandse Loterij), Romain Combaud (Delko Marseille Provence KTM) and Stéphane Poulhiès (Armée de Terre) escaped in the opening kilometers and went on to build a maximum advantage of over five minutes.

Quick-Step Floors dutifully went to the front of the peloton to control the gap. They by far had the strongest squad in the race. The Belgian-based team would receive help from Lotto Soudal, who was riding in support of Greipel, and LottoNL-Jumbo, who was riding in support of Dylan Groenewegen.

As the riders hit the Côte de Crochu with 33km to go, the start of the finale of the race, the fatigue of being in the breakaway for nearly 200km presented itself in the breakaway. Over the top of the climb, only Van Goethem and Naesen were in the lead, but their gap to the peloton was under a minute.

The pace was fierce on the run-in to the Beau Soleil and soon disaster struck the Quick-Step Floors squad. Gaviria missed a corner and crashed. The Colombian would remount and make his way back to the peloton, he would not be a contender for the win.

The Beau Soleil saw the end of the breakaway and with Gaviria out of the picture, Trentin took matters upon himself and launched a fierce attack. The attack caught many off-guard and sent riders scrambling to go with the move. A select group formed over the top of the climb.

Trentin attacked again on the Côte de l’Epan and created the winning selection of the race. Only Andersen was able to go with him and then his teammate and former Paris-Roubaix winner Terpstra bridged, giving Quick-Step Floors two out of the three riders in the lead.

Into the final kilometer, it was apparent it would come down to the leading three, though they had never held a gap greater than 20 seconds over the chasers. Terpstra did the bulk of the work, as Trentin was the far superior sprinter of the two and the Italian delivered.

Andersen was able to capture second to prevent a Quick-Step Floors 1-2. Greipel brought home the chase group less than 10 seconds later to finish fourth. The result’s sheet clearly displayed Quick-Step Floors’ dominance, as they put four riders in the top-10. Maximiliano Richeze finished fifth and Yves Lampaert finished seventh.

Full results

• 1. Matteo Trentin, QUICK – STEP FLOORS, in 5:22:51
• 2. Søren Kragh Andersen, TEAM SUNWEB, at :00
• 3. Niki Terpstra, QUICK – STEP FLOORS, at :01
• 4. André Greipel, LOTTO SOUDAL, at :07
• 5. Maximiliano Ariel Richeze, QUICK – STEP FLOORS, at :07
• 6. Oliver Naesen, AG2R LA MONDIALE, at :07
• 7. Yves Lampaert, QUICK – STEP FLOORS, at :07
• 8. Andrea Pasqualon, WANTY – GROUPE GOBERT, at :07
• 9. Mike Teunissen, TEAM SUNWEB, at :07
• 10. Jean-Pierre Drucker, BMC RACING TEAM, at :07
• 11. Tom Devriendt, WANTY – GROUPE GOBERT, at :07
• 12. Lorrenzo Manzin, FDJ, at :07
• 13. Amund Grøndahl Jansen, TEAM LOTTO NL – JUMBO, at :10
• 14. Olivier Le Gac, FDJ, at :12
• 15. Daniel Oss, BMC RACING TEAM, at :14
• 16. Silvan Dillier, BMC RACING TEAM, at :22
• 17. Jasper De Buyst, LOTTO SOUDAL, at :22
• 18. Marc Sarreau, FDJ, at :28
• 19. Dylan Groenewegen, TEAM LOTTO NL – JUMBO, at :28
• 20. Nikolas Maes, LOTTO SOUDAL, at :28
• 21. Bert De Backer, TEAM SUNWEB, at :28
• 22. Nacer Bouhanni, COFIDIS, SOLUTIONS CREDITS, at :28
• 23. Mark Mcnally, WANTY – GROUPE GOBERT, at :28
• 24. Reto Hollenstein, TEAM KATUSHA ALPECIN, at :28
• 25. Jonas Rickaert, SPORT VLAANDEREN – BALOISE, at :28
• 26. Roy Curvers, TEAM SUNWEB, at :32
• 27. Rudy Barbier, AG2R LA MONDIALE, at :45
• 28. Fernando Gaviria Rendon, QUICK – STEP FLOORS, at :45
• 29. Timothy Dupont, VERANDA’S WILLEMS – CRELAN, at :45
• 30. Roy Jans, WB VERANCLASSIC AQUALITY PROTECT, at :45
• 31. Jesper Asselman, ROOMPOT – NEDERLANDSE LOTERIJ, at :45
• 32. Elmar Reinders, ROOMPOT – NEDERLANDSE LOTERIJ, at :45
• 33. Kevin Le Cunff, HP BTP – AUBER 93, at :45
• 34. Floris Gerts, BMC RACING TEAM, at :45
• 35. Damien Touze, HP BTP – AUBER 93, at :45
• 36. Pierre Gouault, HP BTP – AUBER 93, at :45
• 37. Dries Van Gestel, SPORT VLAANDEREN – BALOISE, at :45
• 38. Frederik Backaert, WANTY – GROUPE GOBERT, at :45
• 39. Brecht Dhaene, WANTY – GROUPE GOBERT, at :45
• 40. Maxime Vantomme, WB VERANCLASSIC AQUALITY PROTECT, at :45
• 41. Jenthe Biermans, TEAM KATUSHA ALPECIN, at :45
• 42. Emiel Vermeulen, ROUBAIX – LILLE METROPOLE, at :45
• 43. Emils Liepins, RIETUMU BANKA – RIGA, at :45
• 44. Remy Di Gregorio, DELKO MARSEILLE PROVENCE KTM, at :45
• 45. Gediminas Bagdonas, AG2R LA MONDIALE, at :45
• 46. Lionel Taminiaux, AGO – AQUA SERVICE, at :45
• 47. Piotr Havik, TEAM KATUSHA ALPECIN, at :45
• 48. Kevin Van Melsen, WANTY – GROUPE GOBERT, at :45
• 49. Delio Fernandez Cruz, DELKO MARSEILLE PROVENCE KTM, at :45
• 50. Xandro Meurisse, WANTY – GROUPE GOBERT, at :45
• 51. David Menut, HP BTP – AUBER 93, at :45
• 52. Bert Van Lerberghe, SPORT VLAANDEREN – BALOISE, at :45
• 53. Joseph Rosskopf, BMC RACING TEAM, at :45
• 54. Geoffrey Soupe, COFIDIS, SOLUTIONS CREDITS, at :45
• 55. Stefan KÜng, BMC RACING TEAM, at :45
• 56. Mark Cavendish, TEAM DIMENSION DATA, at :45
• 57. Amanuel Ghebreigzabhier Werkilul, TEAM DIMENSION DATA, at :45
• 58. Jos Van Emden, TEAM LOTTO NL – JUMBO, at :45
• 59. Rémi Cavagna, QUICK – STEP FLOORS, at :45
• 60. Timo Roosen, TEAM LOTTO NL – JUMBO, at :45
• 61. Asbjørn Kragh Andersen, DELKO MARSEILLE PROVENCE KTM, at :45
• 62. Ramon Sinkeldam, TEAM SUNWEB, at :45
• 63. Angelo Tulik, DIRECT ENERGIE, at :45
• 64. Kevin Reza, FDJ, at :45
• 65. Benoit Vaugrenard, FDJ, at :45
• 66. Aime De Gendt, SPORT VLAANDEREN – BALOISE, at :45
• 67. Gijs Van Hoecke, TEAM LOTTO NL – JUMBO, at :45
• 68. Jérémy Lecroq, ROUBAIX – LILLE METROPOLE, at :45
• 69. Michael Morkov, TEAM KATUSHA ALPECIN, at :59
• 70. Juan Jose Lobato Del Valle, TEAM LOTTO NL – JUMBO, at :59
• 71. Zdenek Štybar, QUICK – STEP FLOORS, at 01:07
• 72. Huub Duijn, VERANDA’S WILLEMS – CRELAN, at 01:32
• 73. Jarl Salomein, SPORT VLAANDEREN – BALOISE, at 01:36
• 74. Nans Peters, AG2R LA MONDIALE, at 01:36
• 75. Sébastien Delfosse, WB VERANCLASSIC AQUALITY PROTECT, at 01:36
• 76. Jordan Levasseur, ARMEE DE TERRE, at 01:38
• 77. Benjamin Thomas, ARMEE DE TERRE, at 02:06
• 78. Jérémy Leveau, ROUBAIX – LILLE METROPOLE, at 02:06
• 79. Romain Le Roux, ARMEE DE TERRE, at 02:06
• 80. Alan Riou, FORTUNEO – OSCARO, at 02:06
• 81. Angel Madrazo Ruiz, DELKO MARSEILLE PROVENCE KTM, at 02:06
• 82. Cyril Lemoine, COFIDIS, SOLUTIONS CREDITS, at 02:09
• 83. Lasse Norman Hansen, AQUA BLUE SPORT, at 02:20
• 84. Lars Petter Nordhaug, AQUA BLUE SPORT, at 02:20
• 85. Gatis Smukulis, DELKO MARSEILLE PROVENCE KTM, at 02:22
• 86. Arjen Livyns, VERANDA’S WILLEMS – CRELAN, at 02:22
• 87. Andre Looij, ROOMPOT – NEDERLANDSE LOTERIJ, at 02:22
• 88. Christophe Noppe, SPORT VLAANDEREN – BALOISE, at 02:22
• 89. Stijn Devolder, VERANDA’S WILLEMS – CRELAN, at 02:22
• 90. Piet Allegaert, SPORT VLAANDEREN – BALOISE, at 02:22
• 91. Nicholas Dlamini, DIMENSION DATA FOR QHUBEKA, at 02:22
• 92. Guillaume Van Keirsbulck, WANTY – GROUPE GOBERT, at 02:22
• 93. Tosh Van Der Sande, LOTTO SOUDAL, at 02:22
• 94. Bram Welten, BMC RACING TEAM, at 02:22
• 95. Brian Van Goethem, ROOMPOT – NEDERLANDSE LOTERIJ, at 02:22
• 96. Anthony Delaplace, FORTUNEO – OSCARO, at 02:22
• 97. Maarten Wynants, TEAM LOTTO NL – JUMBO, at 02:22
• 98. Romain Guillemois, DIRECT ENERGIE, at 02:41
• 99. Romain Cardis, DIRECT ENERGIE, at 02:41
• 100. Thomas Boudat, DIRECT ENERGIE, at 02:41
• 101. Taco Van Der Hoorn, ROOMPOT – NEDERLANDSE LOTERIJ, at 02:41
• 102. Brice Feillu, FORTUNEO – OSCARO, at 02:41
• 103. Viacheslav Kuznetsov, TEAM KATUSHA ALPECIN, at 04:13
• 104. Oscar Riesebeek, ROOMPOT – NEDERLANDSE LOTERIJ, at 04:25
• 105. Jeroen Meijers, ROOMPOT – NEDERLANDSE LOTERIJ, at 04:25
• 106. Bernhard Eisel, TEAM DIMENSION DATA, at 04:25
• 107. Lars Bak Ytting, LOTTO SOUDAL, at 04:25
• 108. Léo Vincent, FDJ, at 04:25
• 109. Maximilian Richard Walscheid, TEAM SUNWEB, at 04:25
• 110. Julien Duval, AG2R LA MONDIALE, at 04:25
• 111. Romain Combaud, DELKO MARSEILLE PROVENCE KTM, at 04:25
• 112. Lander Seynaeve, ROUBAIX – LILLE METROPOLE, at 04:25
• 113. Dimitri Peyskens, WB VERANCLASSIC AQUALITY PROTECT, at 04:25
• 114. Joeri Calleeuw, ROUBAIX – LILLE METROPOLE, at 04:25
• 115. Calvin Watson, AQUA BLUE SPORT, at 04:25
• 116. Ignatas Konovalovas, FDJ, at 04:25
• 117. Daniel Hoelgaard, FDJ, at 04:25
• 118. Dylan Kowalski, ROUBAIX – LILLE METROPOLE, at 04:25
• 119. Julien Antomarchi, ROUBAIX – LILLE METROPOLE, at 04:25
• 120. Anthony Turgis, COFIDIS, SOLUTIONS CREDITS, at 04:25
• 121. Jimmy Turgis, COFIDIS, SOLUTIONS CREDITS, at 04:25
• 122. Stijn Vandenbergh, AG2R LA MONDIALE, at 04:25
• 123. Kevyn Ista, WB VERANCLASSIC AQUALITY PROTECT, at 04:25
• 124. Marco Mathis, TEAM KATUSHA ALPECIN, at 04:25
• 125. Rick Zabel, TEAM KATUSHA ALPECIN, at 04:25
• 126. Franck Bonnamour, FORTUNEO – OSCARO, at 04:25
• 127. Edward Planckaert, SPORT VLAANDEREN – BALOISE, at 04:25
• 128. Jay Robert Thomson, TEAM DIMENSION DATA, at 04:25
• 129. Adam Blythe, AQUA BLUE SPORT, at 04:25
• 130. Jens Debusschere, LOTTO SOUDAL, at 04:25
• 131. Florian Vachon, FORTUNEO – OSCARO, at 04:25
• 132. Matthew Brammeier, AQUA BLUE SPORT, at 04:25
• 133. Nicolas Dougall, TEAM DIMENSION DATA, at 04:25
• 134. Moreno Hofland, LOTTO SOUDAL, at 04:25
• 135. Lawrence Naesen, WB VERANCLASSIC AQUALITY PROTECT, at 04:25
• 136. Robert Thomas Wagner, TEAM LOTTO NL – JUMBO, at 04:25
• 137. Dimitri Claeys, COFIDIS, SOLUTIONS CREDITS, at 04:25
• 138. Phil Bauhaus, TEAM SUNWEB, at 04:25
• 139. Sander Cordeel, VERANDA’S WILLEMS – CRELAN, at 04:25
• 140. Aidis Kruopis, VERANDA’S WILLEMS – CRELAN, at 04:25
• 141. Dries De Bondt, VERANDA’S WILLEMS – CRELAN, at 04:25
• 142. Pim Ligthart, ROOMPOT – NEDERLANDSE LOTERIJ, at 04:25
• 143. Albert Timmer, TEAM SUNWEB, at 04:25
• 144. Yohann Gene, DIRECT ENERGIE, at 05:50
• 145. Alexandre Pichot, DIRECT ENERGIE, at 05:50
• 146. Romain Feillu, HP BTP – AUBER 93, at 05:50
• 147. Johann Van Zyl, TEAM DIMENSION DATA, at 05:50
• 148. Yannick Martinez, DELKO MARSEILLE PROVENCE KTM, at 05:50
• 149. Thibault Ferasse, ARMEE DE TERRE, at 05:50
• 150. Bryan Alaphilippe, ARMEE DE TERRE, at 05:50
• 151. Damien Gaudin, ARMEE DE TERRE, at 05:50
• 152. Thomas Rostollan, ARMEE DE TERRE, at 05:50
• 153. Nicolas Vereecken, ROUBAIX – LILLE METROPOLE, at 05:50
• 154. Dorian Godon, COFIDIS, SOLUTIONS CREDITS, at 05:50
• 155. Benoit Cosnefroy, AG2R LA MONDIALE, at 05:50
• 156. Enzo Wouters, LOTTO SOUDAL, at 05:50
• 157. Daniel Pearson, AQUA BLUE SPORT, at 05:50
• 158. Andrew Fenn, AQUA BLUE SPORT, at 07:00
• 159. Alo Jakin, HP BTP – AUBER 93, at 07:00
• 160. Michael Goolaerts, VERANDA’S WILLEMS – CRELAN, at 07:00
• 161. Nicolas Baldo, HP BTP – AUBER 93, at 07:00
• 162. Laurent Pichon, FORTUNEO – OSCARO, at 12:54
• 163. Armindo Fonseca, FORTUNEO – OSCARO, at 12:54
• 164. Arnaud Gerard, FORTUNEO – OSCARO, at 12:54
• 165. Iljo Keisse, QUICK – STEP FLOORS, at 12:54
• 166. Nicolas Prodhomme, HP BTP – AUBER 93, at 12:54
• 167. Stéphane Poulhies, ARMEE DE TERRE, at 19:34