Grands Prix Cyclistes de Montréal 2018 [FULL RACE]

September 9, 2018

Grands Prix Cyclistes de Montréal 2018 – Montréal – Montréal : 195,2 km

The Grand Prix Cycliste de Montreal has again attracted some of the best Classics riders in the UCI WorldTour, with riders looking to take a prestigious victory on the same course that saw Eddy Merckx win a historic world title in 1974 and Bernt Johansson win an Olympic gold medal in 1976. This year’s parcours holds much of the same characteristics used over the previous years with a climb over Mont Royal and the Cote de Polytechnique in central Montreal, while the addition of a third climb, at Claude-Champagne, could change the way the event has traditionally been raced.

Under the watchful gaze of the winged Goddess of Liberty atop the George-Étienne Cartier Monument, Michael Matthews (Sunweb) found wings of his own to claim the Grand Prix Cycliste de Montreal, and in doing so take his second win of the week after triumphing in Quebec on Friday.

“I started my sprint way too early and I was a little bit worried that I wasn’t going to get the win,” Matthews said. “It was a super hard day out there and my team did an awesome job to keep all the breakaway together and give me an opportunity to sprint. I only just got these guys on the line and I’m super happy to win.”

This time the Australian showcased an even more impressive sprint to surpass a despairing Sonny Colbrelli (Bahrain Merida) in the closing metres, while Greg Van Avermaet (BMC Racing) finished third. In doing so, Matthews becomes the first rider since Simon Gerrans in 2014 to win both Canadian races in the same season, and just as with Gerrans four years ago, Matthews was as clinical as he was confident. Even though he started the sprint from fifth wheel in Montreal, and Colbrelli looked to have secured the win with a bold sprint from 150 metres out, the Sunweb rider found another gear to win by less than a bike length.

Matthews, who was overlooked for the Australian Worlds team, put in a near-flawless display but he had his team to thank after a number of dangerous moves scurried clear in the final few laps. Pre-race favouites Tim Wellens and Matej Mohoric both marshalled separate late attacks, while Colbrelli had the superior support in the final after Matthews’ final supporting cast were burnt off towards the end of the race.

As the leaders turned the final corner with around 500 metres to go Michael Valgren (Astana) hit the front. Matthews was in fifth but kicked for home and moved to the far side of the road. It looked as though he had sprinted too soon, and had to correct his line when Colbrelli opened the throttle. Colbrelli hit the final 75m with the lead but Matthews’ second kick was enough to take the win.

There was a poignant moment, too, when Simon Gerrrans – a rider who clashed with Matthews during their time together at Orica – put in a huge turn on the front of the race in the closing stages in a bid to set up Van Avermaet’s chances. Gerrans would later peel off from the bunch and effectively end his WorldTour career before Matthews would win his second WorldTour level one-day race of his career. The torch has well and truly been passed from one Australian rider to another.

Familiar feeling

The race itself, with the climbs of Mont Royal, the Cote de Polytechnique and Claude-Champagne, saw an early break of five go clear inside the opening kilometres. Canadians once again dominated the early move, with Britain’s Owain Doull (Team Sky) the only non-Canadian in a break made up of home-grown talent Hugo Houle (Team Astana), Nigel Ellsay (Rally Cycling), Adam Roberge (Canada) and Charles-Etienne Chretien (Canada). The group built up a lead of over five minutes during the opening laps, before Team Sunweb, Lotto Soudal and BMC Racing set about organising a chase.

With blue skies, and perfect race conditions, the speed was relaxed, even when youngster Chretien was dropped from the break with 60km to go.

Bringing it back

Wellens’ had his Lotto Soudal squad increase the pace inside the final 40km, while Houle began to struggle at the front. Wellens’ move, with 34km to go, opened up the race, with several teams unwilling to carry Matthews and the other sprinters to the finish. The Belgian’s attack on Mount Royal was quickly snuffed out before Mohoric went clear with far more purpose on the descent. The Bahrain Merida rider arrived in Canada full of confidence after back-to-back stage race wins in Europe, and he looked supreme – even when his compatriot, and the last man standing from the race’s break in 2014, Jan Polanc, joined him with 29km to go. A second counter attack allowed Gregor Mühlberger to make contact with the two Slovenians, and the trio quickly overhauled the day’s early break as Sunweb gave chase.

Gerrans’ final act in a WorldTour race saw him draw the leaders back to 26 seconds as the race hit the final two laps before the Australian swung off and bowed out. He will apparently race the Japan Cup later in the year but this was an emphatically understated way for a rider of his calibre to exit the sport as he wheeled away, unwilling to take questions from the press.

Sam Oomen, a rider more accustomed to leading Tom Dumoulin up mountain passes, assumed control of the bunch with less than two laps remaining as Mohoric and his two breakaway companions held a 15-second lead.

The time is now

On the final ascent of Mount Royal the Sunweb team, with the help of Lotto, regained control but the parcours of this race always provides an opportunity to attack just after one move is nullified. This time James Knox, Jakob Fuglsang, and Wellens slipped clear with just under 10km to go.

Mohoric was now asked to defend rather than attack, and the Slovenian ushered his Bahrain Merida squad to the front in a bid to set up Colbrelli. On the penultimate climb the trio were reeled in, with Mohoric himself leading the bunch into the final stretch.

Then, with the sun starting to set on a crisp Canadian afternoon, Michael Matthews burst from the pack to claim his win. There may not be a Worlds selection for the Canberra kid this year but with the sun setting on Gerran’s career – and most likely Mat Hayman – Matthews has now become Australia’s most successful one-day rider in the peloton. What’s more, he’s done it in just the space of a few days.

Results :
1 Michael Matthews (Aus) Team Sunweb 5:19:27
2 Sonny Colbrelli (Ita) Bahrain-Merida
3 Greg Van Avermaet (Bel) BMC Racing Team
4 Oliver Naesen (Bel) AG2R La Mondiale
5 Timo Roosen (Ned) LottoNl-Jumbo
6 Rui Alberto Faria Da Costa (Por) UAE Team Emirates
7 Diego Ulissi (Ita) UAE Team Emirates
8 Michael Valgren Andersen (Den) Astana Pro Team
9 Patrick Konrad (Aut) Bora-Hansgrohe
10 Edvald Boasson Hagen (Nor) Dimension Data
11 Nathan Haas (Aus) Katusha-Alpecin
12 Valentin Madouas (Fra) Groupama-FDJ
13 Toms Skujins (Lat) Trek-Segafredo
14 Jasper Stuyven (Bel) Trek-Segafredo
15 Jan Polanc (Slo) UAE Team Emirates
16 Brandon Mcnulty (USA) Rally Cycling
17 David Gaudu (Fra) Groupama-FDJ
18 Mathias Frank (Swi) AG2R La Mondiale
19 Guillaume Boivin (Can) Israel-Cycling Academy
20 Daryl Impey (RSA) Mitchelton-Scott
21 Tim Wellens (Bel) Lotto Soudal
22 Peter Kennaugh (GBr) Bora-Hansgrohe
23 James Knox (GBr) Quick-Step Floors
24 Benoit Cosnefroy (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale
25 Jan Bakelants (Bel) AG2R La Mondiale
26 Damiano Caruso (Ita) BMC Racing Team
27 Enrico Gasparotto (Ita) Bahrain-Merida
28 Sebastian Henao Gomez (Col) Team Sky
29 Sébastien Reichenbach (Swi) Groupama-FDJ
30 Antonio Pedrero (Spa) Movistar Team
31 Nathan Brown (USA) EF Education First-Drapac p/b Cannondale 0:00:07
32 Alexis Vuillermoz (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale
33 Nathan Earle (Aus) Israel-Cycling Academy
34 David Lopez Garcia (Spa) Team Sky
35 Zdenek Štybar (Cze) Quick-Step Floors
36 Ben O’connor (Aus) Dimension Data
37 Domenico Pozzovivo (Ita) Bahrain-Merida
38 Jakob Fuglsang (Den) Astana Pro Team
39 Jesper Hansen (Den) Astana Pro Team
40 Carlos Verona (Spa) Mitchelton-Scott 0:00:18
41 Matej Mohoric (Slo) Bahrain-Merida 0:00:26
42 Roman Kreuziger (Cze) Mitchelton-Scott 0:00:27
43 Sam Oomen (Ned) Team Sunweb
44 Paul Martens (Ger) LottoNl-Jumbo 0:00:37
45 Sergei Chernetski (Rus) Astana Pro Team 0:01:20
46 Simon Špilak (Slo) Katusha-Alpecin 0:01:51
47 Reinardt Janse Van Rensburg (RSA) Dimension Data 0:01:58
48 Aleksandr Riabushenko (Blr) UAE Team Emirates
49 Alexander Cataford (Can) Canada
50 Michael Schär (Swi) BMC Racing Team
51 Kristian Sbaragli (Ita) Israel-Cycling Academy
52 Manuele Mori (Ita) UAE Team Emirates
53 Danilo Wyss (Swi) BMC Racing Team
54 Jaime Castrillo Zapater (Spa) Movistar Team
55 Jorge Arcas (Spa) Movistar Team
56 Tim Declercq (Bel) Quick-Step Floors
57 Arthur Vichot (Fra) Groupama-FDJ
58 James Piccoli (Can) Canada
59 Ryan Anderson (Can) Rally Cycling
60 Peter Stetina (USA) Trek-Segafredo
61 Enrico Battaglin (Ita) LottoNl-Jumbo
62 Robin Carpenter (USA) Rally Cycling
63 Robert Britton (Can) Rally Cycling
64 Eros Capecchi (Ita) Quick-Step Floors
65 Leonardo Basso (Ita) Team Sky
66 Michal Golas (Pol) Team Sky
67 Grega Bole (Slo) Bahrain-Merida
68 Steve Morabito (Swi) Groupama-FDJ
69 Kenny Elissonde (Fra) Team Sky
70 Rafael Valls Ferri (Spa) Movistar Team
71 Julien Bernard (Fra) Trek-Segafredo
72 François Bidard (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale 0:02:12
73 G Lawson Craddock (USA) EF Education First-Drapac p/b Cannondale 0:02:15
74 Gregor Mühlberger (Aut) Bora-Hansgrohe 0:02:21
75 Anthony Roux (Fra) Groupama-FDJ 0:02:50
76 Kilian Frankiny (Swi) BMC Racing Team 0:02:56
77 Pawel Poljanski (Pol) Bora-Hansgrohe 0:03:00
78 Brendan Canty (Aus) EF Education First-Drapac p/b Cannondale 0:03:02
79 Marc Soler (Spa) Movistar Team 0:03:04
80 Marco Marcato (Ita) UAE Team Emirates 0:03:08
81 Matteo Fabbro (Ita) Katusha-Alpecin 0:03:12
82 Nikias Arndt (Ger) Team Sunweb 0:03:49
83 Colin Joyce (USA) Rally Cycling 0:04:32
84 Tom-Jelte Slagter (Ned) Dimension Data 0:05:04
85 Bakhtiyar Kozhatayev (Kaz) Astana Pro Team 0:05:06
86 Hector Carretero (Spa) Movistar Team
87 Adam James Hansen (Aus) Lotto Soudal
88 Quentin Jauregui (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale
89 Felix Grossschartner (Aut) Bora-Hansgrohe 0:06:57
90 Michael Gogl (Aut) Trek-Segafredo
91 Daan Olivier (Ned) LottoNl-Jumbo
92 Simon Gerrans (Aus) BMC Racing Team 0:09:40
93 Luke Durbridge (Aus) Mitchelton-Scott
94 Jenthe Biermans (Bel) Katusha-Alpecin
95 Benjamin Perry (Can) Israel-Cycling Academy
96 Nigel Ellsay (Can) Rally Cycling
97 Rémi Cavagna (Fra) Quick-Step Floors
98 Alexander Kristoff (Nor) UAE Team Emirates 0:10:53
99 Adam Roberge (Can) Canada 0:11:31
100 Nickolas Zukowsky (Can) Canada
101 Owain Doull (GBr) Team Sky 0:12:46
102 Hugo Houle (Can) Astana Pro Team 0:13:40
DNF Nathan Van Hooydonck (Bel) BMC Racing Team
DNF Marco Mathis (Ger) Katusha-Alpecin
DNF Davide Martinelli (Ita) Quick-Step Floors
DNF Florian Senechal (Fra) Quick-Step Floors
DNF Christian Knees (Ger) Team Sky
DNF Sam Bennett (Irl) Bora-Hansgrohe
DNF Christoph Pfingsten (Ger) Bora-Hansgrohe
DNF Mathew Hayman (Aus) Mitchelton-Scott
DNF Magnus Cort Nielsen (Den) Astana Pro Team
DNF Amund Grøndahl Jansen (Nor) LottoNl-Jumbo
DNF Gijs Van Hoecke (Bel) LottoNl-Jumbo
DNF Robert Thomas Wagner (Ger) LottoNl-Jumbo
DNF Heinrich Haussler (Aus) Bahrain-Merida
DNF Kristijan Koren (Slo) Bahrain-Merida
DNF Søren Kragh Andersen (Den) Team Sunweb
DNF Roy Curvers (Ned) Team Sunweb
DNF Chad Haga (USA) Team Sunweb
DNF Tom Stamsnijder (Ned) Team Sunweb
DNF John Degenkolb (Ger) Trek-Segafredo
DNF Koen De Kort (Ned) Trek-Segafredo
DNF Nikolas Maes (Bel) Lotto Soudal
DNF Remy Mertz (Bel) Lotto Soudal
DNF Harm Vanhoucke (Bel) Lotto Soudal
DNF Jens Debusschere (Bel) Lotto Soudal
DNF Sep Vanmarcke (Bel) EF Education First-Drapac p/b Cannondale
DNF Joseph Lloyd Dombrowski (USA) EF Education First-Drapac p/b Cannondale
DNF William Clarke (Aus) EF Education First-Drapac p/b Cannondale
DNF Logan Owen (USA) EF Education First-Drapac p/b Cannondale
DNF William Bonnet (Fra) Groupama-FDJ
DNF Baptiste Planckaert (Bel) Katusha-Alpecin
DNF Maxim Belkov (Rus) Katusha-Alpecin
DNF Nicolas Dougall (RSA) Dimension Data
DNF Bernhard Eisel (Aut) Dimension Data
DNF Lachlan Morton (Aus) Dimension Data
DNF Dennis Van Winden (Ned) Israel-Cycling Academy
DNF Guy Niv (Isr) Israel-Cycling Academy
DNF Guy Sagiv (Isr) Israel-Cycling Academy
DNF Adam De Vos (Can) Rally Cycling
DNF Pier Andre Cote (Can) Canada
DNF Charles-Etienne Chretien (Can) Canada
DNF Edward Walsh (Can) Canada