Not favorite De Lie but Fretin is surprisingly the best in Clasica de Almeria's sprint fest

Milan Fretin has won Clasica de Almeria. He succeeded Olav Kooij after an 189.1-kilometer race that traditionally ended in a bunch sprint. The Belgian from Cofidis was surprisingly too strong for Max Kanter (XDS Astana) and Emilien Jeannière (TotalEnergies). Top favorite Arnaud De Lie (Lotto) fell behind and finished fourth.

Edition 38, with 189.1 kilometers. Traditionally, a race has a difficult first part but a less hilly second part. It was no surprise that many fast men were at the start, with the skills to survive a climb. No Visma | Lease a Bike to defend Kooij's title, but Q36.5 did have 2023 winner Matteo Moschetti at the start. Arnaud De Lie (Lotto), Alberto Dainese (Tudor), and Bryan Coquard (Cofidis) were also present.

The hilly first part of the race could lend itself well to a team that would benefit from a tough race, but the teams appeared more than willing to gamble on their fast men. This allowed five riders to break away, of which three would remain: Belgian Victor Vercouille (Flanders-Baloise) was joined by Spaniards Ibai Azanza (Equipo Kern Pharma) and Joan Albert Riera (Illes Balears Arabay). This made for a relatively easy day for the sprinters' teams.

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Sprinters' teams catch leading group, sprint imminent

The sprinters' teams let the trio struggle for as long as possible; the peloton controlled everything. Q36.5 Pro Cycling, Arkéa-B&B Hotels, and TotalEnergies kept the gap to a minimum. On the local circuit, in the last 25 kilometers, the peloton caught up to the leading group, and we could soon prepare for a sprint. The Italian man from Moschetti's team initiated the sprint while De Lie and his men waited for their chance.

Lotto took the lead in the last kilometer, but it was hectic. Astana and TotalEnergies mixed it up in the finale, which was full of traffic islands and roundabouts. In the end, Kanter got a perfect lead-out from teammate Gleb Syritsa, but he had to start his sprint a little too early. Fretin emerged from his wheel and easily held off the oncoming De Lie.

Results Clasica de Almeria 2025

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