'That's extremely disappointing' – Matteo Jorgenson out of Ardennes Classics after fracturing collarbone at Amstel Gold Race

Matteo Jorgenson is out of the Ardennes Classics after he crashed out of the Amstel Gold Race on Sunday.

The American hit the ground with 42km to go after slipping on a wet corner behind Kévin Vauquelin.

The Visma-Lease a Bike rider was among a small lead group made up of Remco Evenepoel (Red Bull-Bora-hansgrohe), Mattias Skjelmose (Lidl-Trek) and Huub Artz (Lotto-Intermarché) when he came off. Vauquelin went first, with Jorgenson on his wheel unable to save himself from falling. He landed hard on his right shoulder and arm, fracturing his collarbone in the crash.

"Matteo broke his collarbone in his crash during the Amstel Gold Race. As a result, he will not start in the Flèche Wallonne or Liège–Bastogne–Liège," the team announced after the incident.

The 26-year-old had been focussing on the upcoming classics, opting out of the cobbled Classics to attend training camps in preparation for the Ardennes.

"We had high expectations for this race and were well prepared. Everyone could see that Matteo was in great form, so it’s very frustrating that our race ended this way," Visma-Lease a Bike's sports director Frans Maassen said.

The race had, until the point of the crash, looked to be shaping up well for the American and the team he was leading. After over 200 kilometres of racing, he had found himself in a nine-man break in the finishing circuits through Valkenburg.

"As a team, we were well positioned throughout," Maassen continued. "The riders did a great job keeping Matteo in a good position all day. The goal was to be among the first to crest the Gulperberg and the Kruisberg. He looked fresh on those climbs, but unfortunately he crashed shortly afterward. That’s extremely disappointing."

While Vauquelin was able to recover quickly from the fall, the US rider stayed down, and out of contention. Artz was also caught by the corner.

Remco Evenepoel went on to win the Amstel Gold Race, placing the achievement in the top-eight wins of his career.