There was a time when the women's Ardennes Classics week was verging on predictable. Not because the racing wasn't exciting, or the riders weren't motivated, but because for a period, one rider had an almost iron grip on the races.
Anna van der Breggen won the mid-week Flèche Wallonne no fewer than seven consecutive times, as well as Liège-Bastogne-Liège back to back in its first two editions and Amstel Gold Race once. She only did the triple once, in 2017, but the more or less guarantee that she would win Flèche each year, and be there or there about, in the other two races, made her the undisputed Queen of the Ardennes, and really characterised what those races were.
Her complete control of Flèche Wallonne only ended when she – temporarily – retired; otherwise, who knows how many she may have won in a row, and in the other races, only a handful of riders could better: perennial rival Annemiek van Vleuten, Kasia Niewiadoma, and her then-teammate Demi Vollering.
In 2021, the year that Van der Breggen would retire, Vollering took her first Liège-Bastogne-Liège title and seemed to confirm what had been in the works for a long time: Vollering was to be the new Anna van der Breggen, a specialist in stage races and the Ardennes, and SD Worx's new talisman.
And for a time, that planned succession worked. Van der Breggen retired, taking up a role in the team car, and she would go on to lead Vollering to stage race victories, a Tour de France Femmes title, and her own Ardennes triple in 2023. A new Queen of the Ardennes was here, fittingly in the form of the former ruler's apprentice. Everything was following the script.
Until this year, that is.
That's because Anna van der Breggen made an unexpected return from retirement, and Demi Vollering left SD Worx-Protime for FDJ-SUEZ, suddenly turning things on their head, and making these two riders, built in the same mold and DS-rider for three seasons, rivals and competitors once again. For the first time, Vollering isn't here to learn from and emulate Van der Breggen; she's here to beat her.
This rivalry and how the two might match up has been one of the most hotly-anticipated narratives of the season, and it's set to reach a real high point at the Ardennes Classics, both riders' stomping grounds and where the clash will be most concentrated, ahead of the stage races where there will be a wider competition. Their previous meetings were warm-ups; this Ardennes week, on their preferred terrain, is the real deal.
So, who is going to come out on top?
It would be easy to put all your eggs in the Vollering basket, given her all-around strength, which only looks to be blooming in her new colours at FDJ-Suez. Just as Van der Breggen once was, Vollering is the dominant rider of the women's peloton, and it's often hard to look past her in races that suit her abilities so well.
After defeats in all three Ardennes last year, she's taken a different path for this period in 2025, to hopefully stave off some of the fatigue that cost her last spring. She skipped the cobbled Classics for altitude camp, so she's coming into this week fresh and likely strong.
She'll line up alongside Juliette Labous and Évita Muzic, who also joined her at altitude, and were the MVPs behind her Strade Bianche win. Another FDJ teamwork masterclass in Flèche and/or Liège doesn't seem unlikely.
The other thing that goes in Vollering's favour is that on the occasions she's met Van der Breggen so far, she's won both times, first at the Setmana Valenciana and then at Strade Bianche. Vollering has been strongest so far, Van der Breggen is still finding her way in the women's peloton. That would be the easy way to look at it.
But cycling isn't easy, and whilst simple, that's probably also an overly simplistic view of the situation. Vollering may be the obvious choice, but Anna van der Breggen is a very serious contender for these races, and it would be no surprise to see her win at least one.
Firstly, whilst Vollering has won in their previous clashes, Van der Breggen has come incredibly close: third at Valenciana, and then second at Strade Bianche. It's really not like Vollering has been miles stronger than her former sports director, nor that Van der Breggen has really needed much time to get up to pace.
She's not troubled the results sheet much since Strade Bianche, but she was parachuted into Flanders off of altitude camp and straight away took 11th. Any notion that she's not up to scratch with the current level can be easily dismissed, and that's in races that she maybe doesn't love or don't suit her. The Ardennes are her territory, she loves them, she thrives in them. If she can take podiums elsewhere, it seems obvious that she can win here. Knowing how to win is no issue; she's very much proven that, so it's more a question of strength, and the signs so far are very promising.
What's more, Van der Breggen literally taught Vollering how to race and win these races, shaping her career from a Parkhotel sprinter to a world-class climber, first as a mentoring teammate and then as director. Knowing each other goes both ways, and Vollering will know some of Van der Breggen's tells, too, but when it comes to the Ardennes, Van der Breggen really wrote the book, and Vollering is still reading from it. That will surely be an advantage.
One key element to remember, though, is that these Ardennes will be about much more than this one rivalry, and both Van der Breggen and Vollering are probably going to find a stronger, bigger set of competitors than usual.
This year, more riders than ever seem to be targeting the Ardennes for a host of different reasons. Peaking for the Ardennes climbs fits better with an assault on the Vuelta and Giro than aiming at the cobbled Classics, and riders like Lotte Kopecky and Elisa Longo Borghini probably feel they've ticked those races off already; it's time to chase another Monument at Liège.
It won't be just about Vollering and Van der Breggen, and they shouldn't just take for granted that they might dominate proceedings. Looking at only each other would be an error.
Whether the races come down to a two-rider battle or a bigger fight, though, we can be sure that both Vollering and Van der Breggen will be there. They're both too strong, too motivated and too specialist in these events not to.
Van der Breggen returning to her dominant ways may sound like it's too good to be true, but so did winning Flèche Wallonne seven years in a row before she did it. Vollering is probably heading to the Ardennes thinking this is another chance to stamp her authority after Strade Bianche and before the stage races, but she should see her compatriot as a serious threat.
The apprentice did become the master, but that storyline was flipped on its head this year, and Van der Breggen is ready to reclaim her title.
