Magnus Sheffield made history today for himself and Ineos Grenadiers as he made his solo victory at Brabantse Pijl. Just a little before his 20th birthday, he made a big name in the one-day race event. He was part of a seven-man group and decided to attack head-on during the last 3.5km to go. The final climb to Overijse was hard, Sheffield was breathless but he bagged his win while leaving the crowd in awe of his performance.
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Magnus got to share the podium with Benoit Cosnefroy (AG2R Citroën) who was short 37 seconds and Warren Barguil (Arkea-Samsic). There were hopes for Remco Evenepoel but after he finished in the sixth place, those hopes and dreams ended.
The final three laps around Overijse became very hard, as riders were fending off attacks from one another while also countering. Remco Evenepoel was way too aggressive in this event, he was dropped not once but twice on the cobbled ascents of Hertstraat but managed to bounce back. In the end, he even received a warning from the jury for pushing Ben Turner.
In the midst of these aggressive riders, Magnus Sheffield was calm and riding smoothly, like there is no pressure on his shoulders. I guess everyone behaves differently under pressure, Magnus is proof of that. When the opportunity to close the gap presented itself, he took it and bagged his win. On victory’s pursuit were Cosnefroy and Evenepoel but they were cornered by Turner and Pidcock, hence the aggression from Evenepoel’s side.
After the race, Sheffield said:
I just followed a move with Wellens, and when he swung off, I found myself alone. I knew I wanted to press on and force the other guys to chase, so I could let my teammates sit on. But everybody was just kind of looking at it, because it was in the final kilometres. I just put it in my biggest gear and tried to go full gas to the finish.
During the last 3.5km of the event, the situation was getting hot and riders were trying to attack each other aggressively. Sheffield noticed the chaos and carved a winning gap, making his team proud.
His closing words were:
I really like these races, with the technical corners and the bad weather. They’re not for the mentally soft kind of person. You had to fight all day out there.
Also Read: Brabantse Pijl Race Jury Smacks A Warning To Remco Evenepoel Over Pushing Ben Turner
Featured Image Via YouTube/Cycling Pro Net
