Tom Boonen heads into the Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix with extra confidence thanks to Friday's win in E3 Harelbeke.
"I was trying to make it a nice race for me," he said. "It's not only important for a result, but for my head for the upcoming races."
The Belgian of team Omega Pharma-QuickStep surpassed Rik Van Looy's record of four E3 Prijs wins on Friday. He claimed four in a row from 2004 to 2007 and won again on Friday, ahead of Oscar Freire (Katusha), to create a new record.
Boonen's break-out season in 2005 included wins in Flanders, Roubaix and the World Championships. He returned to win Flanders the following year in his rainbow jersey and took two more Roubaix wins in 2008 and 2009.
This year, he seems to have renewed energy and strength. Already, he has won stages in Paris-Nice, Argentina and Qatar, including the overall. The E3 Prijs win, raced over many of the cobbled climbs he'll face in Flanders, was a nice bonus.
"I like to have a big win before Flanders," he said. "It takes away the pressure a little bit when you've won one of these races. It makes you more relaxed."
Boonen attacked today on the Taaienberg and led the charge up the Paterberg. After team-mate Sylvain Chavanel was caught, he won the sprint.
"I was testing myself for those upcoming classics, that's why I was doing a few big attacks and not saving myself for the sprint."
He will defend his title in Ghent-Wevelgem on Sunday, skip the Three Days of De Panne mid-week and then focus on Flanders next weekend.
Related links
Boonen wins E3 Harelbeke
Tom Boonen: Rider Profile
Spring Classics 2012: Coverage index
-
-
Remco Evenepoel: 'The most important thing is not to lose too much time'
The Belgian narrowly trails race leader Egan Bernal, who says he needs over a minute's advantage before the final time trial
By Tim Bonville-Ginn •
-
Enter for a chance to win an electric bike from Ride1UP
Sponsored A super-stylish Roadster e-bike up for grabs from Ride 1UP for one US-based reader
By Cycling Weekly •
-
Does lack of sleep make you slower?
How you can get stronger as you slumber: The science of sleep
By Cycling Weekly •
-
This is how you can trade in your old bike for a brand new Giant or Liv machine
Pre-owned bike retailer The Pro’s Closet is helping riders find their dream bike
By Alex Ballinger •
-
‘Behind every vehicle is a person making decisions’: New media guidelines released for journalists writing about road collisions
Chris Boardman is among those supporting the new guidelines, which are designed to change the way we discuss crashes
By Alex Ballinger •
-
Richard Freeman 'wants to share everything he knows' about British Cycling and Team Sky with WADA
Richard Freeman is said to want to tell the World Anti-Doping Agency everything he knows about what was going on when he worked at British Cycling and Team Sky
By Jonny Long •
-
130 people who changed cycling and getting them all on the cover
There is one clear inspiration for this week’s special cover - The Beatles’ Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band album. We spoke to Sir Peter Blake, the artist who created the iconic album artwork.
By Simon Richardson •
-
British Cycling concerned about ‘substantial breach of privacy’ over Dame Sarah Storey’s backdated TUE for salbutamol
The governing body said it is worried about how the revelation could impact athletes who require medical treatment
By Alex Ballinger •
-
Former police officer says driver threatened ‘to knock him off and kill him’ before crashing into him and fleeing the scene
The cyclist, a former senior investigative officer in fatal traffic collisions, started to investigate the driver himself
By Alex Ballinger •
-
Doping ban for former Trek-Segafredo rider upheld after his appeal fails
The Court of Arbitration for Sport upheld the four-year ban for the 36-year-old
By Alex Ballinger •
