Patrick Lefevere: Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl have to race 'smarter' at Tour of Flanders
Belgian team head into Sunday looking for a result after being out of sorts at Classics


Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl have to race "smarter" in order to make an impact at the Tour of Flanders on Sunday, their boss Patrick Lefevere has said.
The team heads into the Ronde having only won once in Belgium this season, at the second tier Kuurne-Bruxelles-Kuurne.
In the all-important run-up to Sunday, the team have managed 10th at the E3 Saxo Bank Classic, 32nd at Gent-Wevelgem, and 14th at Dwars door Vlaanderen.
They are not favourites for Flanders, an unusual position for the Belgian squad that are usually so dominant, having won eight editions since 2003.
“We are not used to racing defensively,” Lefevere told the media on Thursday. “We have to accept this. We have 11 riders who are sick. Even me, I am home sick. We are hoping we can recover Sunday, and maybe if we are not 100 percent, we will fight for the victory.”
>>> Where are Quick-Step? The tale of the Belgian super-team missing in action
Illness, along with injury to some key riders, has hobbled Quick-Step. Tim Declercq only made his return to racing on Wednesday after suffering periocarditis, and Yves Lampaert and Florian Sénéchal are both making their way back from illness contracted during Paris-Nice.
“I always say that we will make the full report after Liège-Bastogne-Liège, and maybe it’s lucky for us, Paris-Roubaix comes one week later this year,” Lefevere said. “I hope, I saw it in the past, I remember 2001, we didn't have one result and then at Paris-Roubaix we went 1-2-3, so you never know."
Rather than their usual format of having multiple options, Quick-Step will ride out of Antwerp focusing fully on getting Kasper Asgreen to win. He is the defending champion, and has looked good at times this season, but it will be a different situation for the team.
"This year I am going into the race a bit more as the sole leader," he said. "Last year, with Alaphilippe as the world champion, the leadership was more shared. It means I am going in a bit differently, but the legs will decide who will be in the final. It would be amazing to win Flanders again, but it will be very difficult. It gives me a lot of motivation to be the defending champion"
“The goal is to try to win again,” Asgreen continued. “The team was generally stronger last year without the sickness we’ve had this year. We will make the best of it. It makes it more difficult to make a move. It’s not so easy to sneak away anymore.”
Quick-Step are normally the aggressors in a race like the Tour of Flanders, helping to blow the race apart, but on Wednesday at Dwars they were strangely absent from the front move. However, Lefevere said that he would not change the way his team rode, saying that they were better than it seemed at Dwars.
“We never focus on the wheel of somebody else," he explained. "You have to be intelligent and know when to move. We are not used to racing to defend, we are used to racing an aggressive race. The race is very long and there are a lot of tricky points. I hope the guys can stay on the bike and we can be there."
Despite the lack of top results in the Belgian Classics, the team boss insisted that the team was not panicking, and that they could grow from their hardship at the moment.
“You can always learn off the difficult moments, so if later you can win, it makes a lot of difference for us,” Lefevere argued. “I always say panic is a bad advisor, I don’t want to see them race with stress. We have to be smarter but we are not used to racing like in this manner of waiting for others.”
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
Hello, I'm Cycling Weekly's digital staff writer. I like pretending to be part of the great history of cycling writing, and acting like a pseudo-intellectual in general.
Before joining the team here I wrote for Procycling for almost two years, interviewing riders and writing about racing. My favourite event is Strade Bianche, but I haven't quite made it to the Piazza del Campo just yet.
Prior to covering the sport of cycling, I wrote about ecclesiastical matters for the Church Times and politics for Business Insider. I have degrees in history and journalism.
-
-
'This was my most beautiful victory' - Giulio Ciccone overwhelmed by Giro d'Italia win
The Italian powered to an impressive solo victory on stage 15 of the Giro on Sunday
By Ryan Dabbs • Published
-
Ellen van Dijk says breaking Hour Record will be difficult: 'Joss Lowden's record is a really high standard'
The Dutchwoman will attempt to break Lowden's distance of 48.405km at the Velodrome Suisse on Monday
By Ryan Dabbs • Published
-
Mark Cavendish wants to continue for 'at least' two more years
Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl sprinter turns 37 this weekend
By Adam Becket • Published
-
The David Guetta of the peloton? Analysing Pieter Serry's Giro d'Italia playlist
We listened to Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl's playlist so you didn't have to
By Adam Becket • Published
-
Julian Alpahilippe returns to training, but Tour de France participation still in doubt
Quick-Step say Frenchman's punctured lung is fully healed
By Adam Becket • Published
-
'In the end, what can you do?' — Mark Cavendish misses out on Giro d'Italia stage five sprint
Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl sprinter distanced by peloton on climb
By Adam Becket • Published
-
Liège-Bastogne-Liège victory 'my best day on the bike ever' says Remco Evenepoel
The Belgian prodigy attacked on the La Redoute, riding 29km solo to take his first Monument victory, saving Quickstep-Alpha Vinyl’s classics season
By Owen Rogers • Published
-
Julian Alaphilippe out of Liège-Bastogne-Liège after a huge crash
The French world champion is reported to be conscious but in an ambulance after the incident
By Owen Rogers • Published
-
From the cobbles to the race track: Tom Boonen is living his best life
Classic legend Tom Boonen on race car driving, Mathieu van der Poel and modern cycling
By Anne-Marije Rook • Published
-
Yves Lampaert said he used a judo move to avoid serious injury at Paris-Roubaix
Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl rider crashed after striking a fan last Sunday
By Adam Becket • Published