Faster than Paris-Roubaix: Alejandro Valverde posted his Tour cobbles recon on Strava, and he absolutely smashed it
Faster than the riders in Paris-Roubaix itself

Alejandro Valverde may not have ridden Paris-Roubaix last weekend, but if he had then he may well have been towards the sharp-end of affairs if his recon of some of the cobble sectors ahead of the Tour de France is anything to go by.
Valverde travelled to northern France on Tuesday to take a look the final 110km of stage nine of the 2018 Tour de France, which features many of cobble sectors used in Paris-Roubaix and finishes outside the Roubaix velodrome, and posted his ride on Strava (opens in new tab).
>>> The best 'Morning Ride' of all time? Silvan Dillier shares his Paris-Roubaix ride to Strava
Riding with Movistar team-mates Nairo Quintana, Mikel Landa, Imanol Erviti, Marc Soler and Jasha Sütterlin, you might think that Valverde might want to take things easy to avoid any falls ahead of the Ardennes Classics, but instead he absolutely smashed it as he covered most sectors faster than riders in Paris-Roubaix had managed a few days earlier.
Granted, the riders on Sunday had a few extra kilometres under their belts before reaching the cobbles, but Valverde's times are still pretty extraordinary for a man who will be looking to climb to his sixth Flèche Wallonne on top of the 26 per cent Mur de Huy in just a few days time.
A photo posted by on
The Movistar riders joined the Paris-Roubaix route at around the 77km to go mark, with Valverde immediately tearing it up on the cobbles at Brillon where he narrowly missed on the KOM, held by Edward Theuns from 2015, but was still 15 seconds quicker than anyone in the 2018 edition of Paris-Roubaix.
At the next section at Sars-et-Rosières, Valverde was only two second off Niki Terpstra's six-year-old KOM but was 10 seconds faster than Greg Van Avermaet a few days earlier, before he eased off the gas a bit to only beat Wout van Aert and Alexander Kristoff's time by a couple of seconds on the Bersée sector.
Unfortunately the Tour de France does not use the five-star sectors at Mons-en-Pévèle or the Carrefour de l'Arbre, but Valverde was still able to get his teeth into a four-star sector at Camphin-en-Pévèle where once again he set a scintillating time, only being bettered by Yves Lampaert and Tim De Clercq from this year's race.
So just as Vincenzo Nibali was able to thrive on the cobbles in the 2014 Tour de France, should you be looking forward to another climber finding success on the pavé in 2018.
Thank you for reading 5 articles this month* Join now for unlimited access
Enjoy your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
*Read 5 free articles per month without a subscription
Join now for unlimited access
Try first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
Henry Robertshaw began his time at Cycling Weekly working with the tech team, writing reviews, buying guides and appearing in videos advising on how to dress for the seasons. He later moved over to the news team, where his work focused on the professional peloton as well as legislation and provision for cycling. He's since moved his career in a new direction, with a role at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.
-
-
“I should be doing my final exams but instead I’m riding the Giro!”
Cycling Weekly meets Team Mendelspeck, one of the amateur teams riding the Giro Donne
By Owen Rogers • Published
-
'We expected chaos': Ineos Grenadiers survive to fight on at Tour de France
Geraint Thomas crashes, but loses only 13 seconds to Pogačar as cobbles wreak Tour havoc
By James Shrubsall • Published
-
Man accused of reversing into Alejandro Valverde released with charges
Valverde didn't suffer major injuries in the hit and run incident and has since been released from hospital
By Ryan Dabbs • Published
-
Alejandro Valverde admits Giro d'Italia 'general classification very difficult because of my age' as he targets stage victory
The Spaniard is hopeful of winning a stage as he competes in the Giro for the just the second time in his career
By Ryan Dabbs • Published
-
Winner Dylan van Baarle shares impressive Strava data from fastest-ever Paris-Roubaix
The Dutchman covered the 257.2km route in 5-37-00, winning with a powerful solo attack 19km from the finish line
By Ryan Dabbs • Published
-
Is the Paris-Roubaix tubular dead? Why tubeless tyres are winning on the cobbles
The unique challenges of the Hell of the North place much emphasis on wheel selection. We talk to two teams and two wheel manufacturers about solving the problem that is Roubaix
By Luke Friend • Published
-
Filippo Ganna to be given opportunities at Milan-San Remo and Paris-Roubaix this year
Italian rouleur says he wants to prove he is more than "just" a time triallist and track specialist
By Adam Becket • Published
-
What did we learn from the first elite road races of the year?
Alejandro Valverde is still good; Lotto-Soudal are hungry for results; Biniam Girmay might be a force to be reckoned with
By Adam Becket • Published
-
Vincenzo Nibali to tackle Paris-Roubaix for first time in 2022
Italian is down to race all five monuments in 2022 for Astana-Qazaqstan
By Adam Becket • Published
-
Alejandro Valverde will ride Giro d'Italia and Vuelta a España in final season
The Spanish rider consequently won't compete at the Tour de France ever again
By Ryan Dabbs • Published