LIVE: La Flèche Wallonne 2018

Welcome to La Flèche Wallonne 2018 live feed coverage. Cyclingpro.net is delivering direct from inside the race the latest news regarding the second of three classics in the Ardennes. La Flèche Wallonne has come to its eighty-second edition in its history and, as usual, Wallonia’s roads are featuring the event. The race will hit eleven hills and the route, which amounts to 198 kilometers, runs from Seraing to Huy. As usual the final roughness of La Flèche Wallonne route is the Mur de Huy, one of cycling’s most famous and steep epilogues. Alejandro Valverde (Movistar) will take part to the competition. The Spaniard is the champion in office of the race and has been the title holder of the competition since 2014.

Live starts at 11:25 CET

Here is La Flèche Wallonne 2018 Startlist.

La Flèche Wallonne 2018 Profile

LIVE

TOP 10
1 ALAPHILIPPE Julian Quick-Step Floors    4:53:37
2 VALVERDE Alejandro Movistar Team    + 0:04
3 VANENDERT Jelle Lotto Soudal    + 0:06
4 KREUZIGER Roman Mitchelton-Scott   ,,
5 MATTHEWS Michael Team Sunweb   ,,
6 MOLLEMA Bauke Trek – Segafredo   ,,
7 WELLENS Tim Lotto Soudal   ,,
8 SCHACHMANN Maximilian Quick-Step Floors   ,,
9 BARDET Romain AG2R La Mondiale   ,,
10 KONRAD Patrick BORA – hansgrohe   + 0:12

16.31
Alaphilippe didn’t celebrate on the finish line because he was sure Nibali and Kangert were still ahead of the peloton!

PODIUM
1. Alaphilippe
2. Valverde
3. Vanendert

16.21
Alaphilippe attacked with just 250 meters to the finish line and takes the success!

16.20
The group is all together with only 600 meters remaining!

16.18
Race situation at the bottom of the Mur de Huy
Leaders: Haig, Schachmann
Peloton: + 15” Peloton
Nibali and Kangert are chased by the main group.

16.16
On the descent the leaders’advantage holds on at 23”. The leading group splitted: Haig and Schachmann are leading.

16.13
The group is off at an astonishing pace! The gap falls below 20” when Quick Step Floors and Bora – hansgrohe are at the front of the chase. Roux and Benedetti are swallowed in the group.

16.09
The race is on the Cote de Cherave!

16.08
Tiesj Benoot(Lotto – Soudal) is struggling in the head of the chase. The Belgian’s effort reduced the gap to 29” when the race is at the bottom of the Cote de Cherave.

16.03
Only 12 kilometers are still to be covered and the race is on the way to the Cote de Cherave. The leaders will hit the penultimate climb of today’s racing with over 7 kilometers to go. The gap is slighty wearing thin because of Lotto-Soudal’s injection in pace at the front of the chasing group.

15.55
The leaders widen the gap to 50”! Daniel Martin, Wout Poels and Simon Gerrans are definitely cut off from the fight for the success.

15.51
Aliaksandr Riabushenko, Steven Kruijswijk, Simon Gerrans, Wout Poels, Hermann Pernsteiner are some of the riders who are part of Daniel Martin’s group. Dimension Data moved up to the front of the main group and joins Landa in the chase.

15.47
Race situation with 24 km to go.
Leaders: Nibali, Haig, Roux, Benedetti, Schachmann, Kangert
Chase: + 40” Peloton
Peloton: + 1’05” Daniel Martin group

15.45
Cesare Benedetti succeeded in reeling in the breakaway. David Gaudu is really far from the chasing group whereas Rafal Majka and Romain Bardet were in the last positions on the top of the Mur de Huy. Daniel Martin dropped the main group!

15.42
Kwiatkowski and De Marchi are chased by the peloton led by Mikel Landa on the Mur de Huy. Cesare Benedetti dropped the wheels of the leaders but he didn’t lost much ground.

15.39
Romain Bardet and Sergio Henao crashed with Quentin Pacher and Maurits Lammertink.

15.37
Race situation at the bottom of the penultimate passage on the Mur de Huy.
Leaders: Nibali, Haig, Roux, Benedetti, Schachmann, Kangert
Chase: + 20” Kwiatkowski, De Marchi
Peloton: + 35”

15.35
Luis Angel Mate (Cofidis) crashed heavily!

15.33
Mikel Landa is the only Movistar together with Valverde in the main group! Michal Kwiatkowski joined Alessandro De Marchi in the chase.

15.31
With over 34 kilometers remaining Alessandro De Marchi is trying to jump across the gap to the leading group, which is 20” ahead of the chasers.

15.28
The leading group splitted into two packs. The first one is composed of Jack Haig, Anthony Roux, Vincenzo Nibali, Cesare Benedetti, Maximilian Schachmann and Tanel Kangert when they are on the slopes of the Cote de Cherave.

15.24
The peloton holds on at 25” behind the lead. As soon as Nibali’s group was chased about fifteen riders moved a counter-attack.

15.19
The breakaway is over. Nibali chased the former leaders on the summit of the Cote d’Ereffe but their advantage was too slight. The peloton is now all together but there is no team that is controlling the race effectively.

15.16
Hardy, Roux, Benedetti and Muller are the only ones that resisted in the lead of the race. In the meantime Vincenzo Nibali attacks!

15.14
The breakaway hits the Cote d’Ereffe when its advantage over the group has reduced to 30”. In the meantime Andriy Grivko moves another attack together with four men.

15.11
The situation at the front of the group is very chaotic. More and more attacks have been moved within the last couple of kilometers. When someone is not trying to go clear UAE Team Emirates is sitting in the top position of the peloton.

15.06
With 55 kilometers to go the try is called off by the peloton. Several other riders tried to move a counter-attack but Movistar chased every attacker. Only 52 kilometers of racing are still to be covered when the gap has lessened to 1’05”.

15.02
A dozen of riders are attempting to open a gap over the rest of the peloton. Mikel Landa, Michal Kwiatkowski, Sam Oomen and Alberto Rui Costa are part of the try.

14.59
The leaders are marching all together on the Mur de Huy. Only Antoine Warnier and Romain Combaud are losing little ground to the most active rider in the lead, Cesare Benedetti of Bora – hansgrohe. Also the peloton is on the slopes of the climb: Michal Kwiatkowski is setting the pace at the front.

14.54
The breakaway is on the Mur de Huy while the leaders’ advantage holds on at 2’20” on the group.

14.52
Bahrain – Merida, Lotto Nl – Jumbo, Quick Step Floors and Mitchelton – Scott moved up to the front of the peloton and took the lead of the chase.

14.48
Listen to what Daniel Martin (click here) and Dylan Teuns (click here) told us this morning at the start of 2018 La Flèche Wallonne.

14.45
With just over a handful of kilometers to the first passage on the Mur de Huy the group is still led by Movistar together with UAE Team Emirates. The gap to the breakaway has lessened to 2’30”.

14.38
After three hours of racing the average speed is 39,9 kph. The race is on the Cote d’Amay and Movistar is all together at the front of the chase setting the tempo.

14.30
With over 75 kilometers remaining the breakaway of eight sits 3’50” over the group. The race is on the way to hit the Cote d’Amay.

14.24
A crash occurred in the peloton. We do know that Lawson Craddock (EF – Drapac) was involved and actually he has just reeled in the back of the peloton.

14.18
The gap lessens to 3’05” with over 90 kilometers remaining.

14.07
The peloton’s little injection in pace has cut the gap to 3:25 when the race is on the Cote de Mont.

14.00
According to the last chronometric reading the breakaway sits 3’40 ahead of the peloton. We remind the men in the lead: Romain Hardy (Fortuneo – Samsic), Anthony Roux (Groupama – FDJ), Cesare Benedetti (Bora – hansgrohe), Anthony Perez (Cofidis), Romain Combaud (Delko – Provence Marseille), Patrick Muller (Vital Concept), Antoine Warnier (WB Aqua Project – Veranclassic) and Kevin Van Melsen (Wanty – Groupe Gobert).

13.56
100 kilometers to go at 2018 La Flèche Wallonne.

13.44
The breakaway is 10 kilometers far from the feeding zone. 90 kilometers have been covered and the leaders’advantage on the group amounts to 3’55”.

13.28
The break is at the bottom of the Col de La Redoute.

13.25
Race situation after 78 kilometers of racing.
Leaders: Hardy, Roux, Benedetti, Perez, Combaud, Muller, Van Melsen, Warnier
+ 4’10”: Peloton

13.10
On the summit of the Cote de la Vecquée Antoine Warnier passes through the KOM in first. The group is 4 minutes behind the lead when 65 kilometers have been covered since the start was given.

13.01
The gap is going down quickly on the slopes of the Cote de la Vecquée: the break sits 4’25” ahead of the peloton.

12.57
After 60 kilometers of racing the gap lessens to 4’45”.

12.53
The gap holds on at 5’10” at the bottom of today’s first climb: Cote de la Vecquée. UAE Team Emirates is now leading the peloton.

12.41
When the gap widened to 5’30” the group put itself into a single-file line. Romain Bardet (Ag2r La Mondiale) is calling his car.

12.31
39,5 kilometers have been covered during the first hour of racing.

12.24
The weather conditions are excellent today in Wallonia. Current temperature is 21°C (70°F), sunny and very blue sky.

12.20
Race situation after 37 kilometers of racing.
Leaders: Hardy, Roux, Benedetti, Perez, Combaud, Muller, Van Melsen, Warnier
+ 5’00”: Peloton

12.13
The bunch stopped its march for about 40 seconds because of a closed crossing level.

12.08
With 29 kilometers from the start the break still sits 3’40” ahead of the group. Benjamin King (Dimension Data) abandons the competition.

12.00
The chase joined the breakaway in the lead of the race! We have a leading group of eight now. In the meantime UAE Team Emirates and Groupama – FDJ moved up to the front of the peloton together with Movistar. The breakaway’s advantage holds on at 3’40” after 22 kilometers of racing.

11.52
Situation after 18 kilometers of racing.
Leaders: Hardy, Roux, Benedetti, Perez, Combaud, Muller.
+ 55″: Van Melsen, Warnier
+ 3’30”: Peloton.
Movistar is setting the tempo at the front of the group.

11.47
Antoine Warnier (WB Aqua Project – Veranclassic) and Kevin Van Melsen (Wanty – Groupe Gobert) are chasing the breakaway. The leading group now sits 2’30” ahead of the peloton and 55″ over the chasing group after 15 kilometers of racing.

11.42
Leaders:
54 Romain Hardy (Fortuneo – Samsic)
64 Anthony Roux (Groupama – FDJ)
112 Cesare Benedetti (Bora – hansgrohe)
218 Anthony Perez (Cofidis)
231 Romain Combaud (Delko – Provence Marseille)
245 Patrick Muller (Vital Concept)

11.40
Five riders joined Muller, who’s twenty-two today, in the leading group. The pace set by the peloton is slowing down so there are real chances for the breakaway to open a gap.

11.35
After 6 kilometers of racing the pace is really high and Patrick Muller (Vital Concept) is attempting to go clear solo.

11.33
Aaron Verwilst (Sport Vlaanderen – Baloise) is a non-starter. In this manner are 174 in total the riders who are taking part to the competition.

11.26
The real start has just been given!

11.25
Hello, good morning and welcome to our live coverage of La Flèche Wallonne 2018! We’ll be delivering live updates direct from inside the peloton throughout today’s racing.