Jannik Steimle (Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team) claimed a surprise victory at the Grand Prix de Denain, where the early breakaway held on after the group of favourites was stalled by a crash on the final sector of cobbles.
Steimle outsprinted breakaway companion Cerial Desal (Bingoal WB), while Dries Van Gestel (TotalEnergies) pipped Arnaud De Lie (Lotto-Dstny) to third place, 11 seconds down on the escapees.
That pair had been in a group of nine strongmen that was closing in on the escapees in the finale, but their pursuit was hampered when Stefan Küng (Groupama-FDJ) crashed on the last section of cobbles, bringing De Lie and others down with him.
Only Van Gestel and De Lie’s teammate Brent Van Moer came through without falling, but they couldn’t strike a working agreement to chase down the remaining escapees.
By that point, Steimle, Desal and Maxime Jarnet (Van Rysel-Roubaix) still had almost a minute or so in hand on their chasers, and it was soon clear that they would fight out the victory.
Jarnet was distanced in the closing kilometres, and Steimle’s experience and strength made the difference in the two-up sprint for the win.
“I’m really happy that we made it to the finish,” Steimle said. “We had a really nice group from the start and I think we really raced well together. Then in the end, I think it was crucial to stay on the bike in the wet cobbled sections.”
Steimle joined Q36.5 in the winter after spending his first seasons as a professional with QuickStep.
“I was at QuickStep for the last four years,” the German said. “I was more a helper there, so I changed teams to get my own chances. I’m really happy with this, and now I’ll go with a lot of motivation to the big Classics.”
Steimle, Desal and Jarnet were joined by James Fouché (Euskaltel-Euskadi) and Paul Hennequin (Nice Métropole Côte d'Azur) in an early break of five riders, and they gained a maximum advantage of seven minutes over the peloton.
They still had five minutes in hand on the bunch by the time they hit the first sector of cobbles with 80km remaining. That was enough to persuade Küng to spring into action. The Swiss rider attacked alone from the peloton with a shade over 60km to go, and he looked at ease on the cobbles as he closed the gap to three minutes.
By then, only Steimel, Desal and Jarnet remained in front, while Lotto-Dstny were riding to bring the pre-race favourite De Lie back into contention, with UAE Team Emirates also prominent.
With 40km to, Küng was joined by a group that included De Lie, Van Moer, Lewis Askey (Groupmama-FDJ), Van Gestel, Piet Allegaert, Aimé De Gendt (Cofidis), Hugo Page (Intermarché-Wanty), Juan Molano and Filippo Baroncini (UAE Team Emirates).
After a solo effort from Baroncini had failed to make much of an impact on the break’s lead, the gap eventually began to come down thanks to forcing from Küng, De Lie and Van Moer. With 12km remaining, the gap was down to a minute, and it looked as though the favourites might fight out the win after all.
The dynamic of the race changed, however, on the final sector of cobbles. Küng was driving the pace with intent on the front, but his wheels slipped from under him. Van Gestel, De Lie and Molano also came down with him, and all momentum ebbed away from the chasing group.
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