On the steep and narrow final climb, Scaroni is the strongest but also the smartest: Victory in Classic Var

Christian Scaroni won the second edition of the Classic Var. The Italian from XDS-Astana was the strongest on the difficult final climb of the French one-day race. This was his third professional victory but also the first for his team this season.

The Classic Var was first organized in 2024. This was the first time the race had finished on the challenging Mont Faron, where Tobias Halland Johannessen thought he had achieved a remarkable victory. However, he cheered at the wrong arch and saw Lenny Martinez pass him at the last moment. This year, the race would not reach the mountain, but with the arrival in Fayence, a beautiful finish for the punchers was on the program.

The beginning of the race was very flat. Five men rode away: Baptiste Veistroffer (Lotto) was joined by his compatriots Célestin Guillon (Van Rysel Roubaix), Maël Guégan (CIC - U - Nantes) and Damien Girard (Nice Métropole Côte d'Azur). The five riders had a maximum lead of about five minutes, but once the hilly middle phase began, this had already been reduced to about 2.5 minutes.

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No battle in tricky final; favorites wait 

However, little happened in this difficult part of the race. No one wanted to make it challenging so the breakaway riders could survive for a long time. The favorites wanted to wait until the last climb, which averaged more than 10 percent. The front runners had one minute and 15 kilometers to go, but the hills in the final made it impossible for the five in front.

They were brave, but the party was over for the breakaway riders just before the final climb. Veistroffer tried to stay ahead, but the adventure also ended for the Frenchman from Lotto. Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale did much work for Paul Lapeira, but Victor Lafay was the first to accelerate in the steep sections. His teammate then took over, but Christian Scaroni timed his sprint perfectly. He entered the final corner first, and no one could catch him. Lapeira finished second, ahead of teammate Lafay.

Results Classic Var 2025

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