Take nothing away from Zdenek Stybar's fine solo attack and win at Omloop Het Nieuwsblad but his victory was sealed through a collective performance from Deceuninck-QuickStep.
The Belgian team were present in every major attack during the second half of the race, and even when their rivals launched a late chase to catch the move that contained Stybar, the eventual winner still had several teammates in the second group who were waiting to pounce if needed. Mounting a chase when you have Yves Lampaert, Bob Jungels and Philippe Gilbert sitting on your shoulder must feel like riding up the Muur with two flat tires.
To cement their dominance in the first cobbled Classic of the season, Deceuninck finished with Lampaert and Gilbert seventh and eighth, respectively. And in case you've lost count, the team have already notched up 12 wins this season. The likes of Peter Sagan, John Degenkolb and Alexander Kristoff will no doubt feature later in the spring campaign, while Greg Van Avermaet (CCC Team) put in a valiant effort to claim second in the finish town of Ninove, but Omloop provided an ominous sign for the rest of the Classics.
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"In every part of the race we had someone there and I must say that Stybar was always awake and always there. He was in the first main break and as a team, we had a really good performance," Tom Steels, their director and the 1996 winner of this race, told Cyclingnews at the finish.
After posting riders in several moves, the key point came when a crash splintered the front group. Stybar made it through with six other riders but he was more than capable of matching Van Avermaet whenever the Belgian attacked on the final set of climbs. Once the leading group reached the final 13 kilometres of flat roads, and with the rest of the peloton out of the picture, it was up to Stybar to pick his moment. He couldn't have timed it better. He waited for Van Avermaet to chase down a move from Tim Wellens before executing his own assault once the Lotto rider was brought to heel. Van Avermaet gave chase once more but when his shoulders dropped and he looked around for support Stybar had the necessary gap and the race was effectively won.
However, as much as Stybar won this race through his own strengths, and his renewed confidence after a lean spell in 2018, he owed much to his teammates. They covered moves and wore out the chase when Sunweb, Jumbo Visma, and Team Sky looked to breathe life into a counter attack.
You can read more at Cyclingnews.com
via Cyclingnews Latest Interviews and Features http://www.cyclingnews.com/features/omloop-het-nieuwsblad-strength-in-depth-a-continued-luxury-for-deceuninck-quickstep-analysis
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