Barredo crashes hard, Gesink not as hot as expected
The Dutch Rabobank team did not have the best day in Flèche Wallonne on Wednesday. Carlos Barredo crashed hard and it remains to be seen if he can participate in Sunday’s Liège-Bastogne-Liège. Robert Gesink had hoped for a better place than 14th. He finished eight seconds behind his teammate Paul Martens.
Directeur Sportif Frans Maassen had no explanation for Gesink’s result. “We had thought to get Robert close to a podium finish,” Maassen said on rabosport.nl. “But he didn’t have good legs today. Robert usually still can create a surprise in the end, but obviously today that wasn’t possible.” Maassen was quick to say that this wasn’t to criticize Gesink. “There is no need to panic. Don’t forget that he finished 14th after all and he also rode a good race on Sunday.” In the Amstel Gold Race, Gesink was ninth, 19 seconds behind winner Philippe Gilbert.
The season planning stays intact for the Rabobank squad. “Gesink is still a good racer – a day like today doesn’t change that.” Maassen added that it was time to move on. “We will look towards Liège-Bastogne-Liège now.”
Carlos Barredo was off worse, crashing hard in the mid-week classic. The Spaniard ended the day in the hospital. “I hope he didn’t break anything,” Maassen said. “He has a lot of abrasion.” The bike was totaled in the incident. “The fork broke as well as the saddle. The injuries did not look good,” Maassen explained. It is not clear if Barredo can ride on Sunday. “It is possible he won’t be able to ride in Liège, but first we have to see what exactly he has.”
Bauke Mollema was another rider hoping for a better day on the Dutch squad. “Bauke himself doesn’t know why,” Maassen said. “He felt good on the road, but in the final climb he wasn’t his usual self.”
The only thing that Rabobank could book on the positive side of things was the tenth place by Paul Martens. “Paul rode a really nice race. In-between all the big shots he rode to a fine tenth place. In Amstel he already rode a good race, but here he really surprised with his finish.”