Following Alessandro Borgo’s impressive victory at GP Criquielion, Bahrain Victorious heads into another Belgian one-day race full of confidence and motivation, lining up on Monday, May 25, at the Antwerp Port Epic.

The race is known for its demanding and technical parcours, featuring no less than 28.5 kilometres of cobblestones and 41.5 kilometres of unpaved roads spread across a 195-kilometre route around Antwerp. The race starts in the port area and finishes nearby at the Schengenplein in Antwerp.

Among the key sectors are the gravel roads of Zone Kabeljauw (1,515 m) and Opstalpolder Zuid (1,635 m), together with three challenging cobbled sectors, all tackled three times throughout the race. In the decisive phase, riders will also face the demanding Zone De Leeuw (2,405 m) twice, while the unpaved sectors of Boterseweg (1,495 m) and Blokweg (1,695 m) are also expected to play a major role in shaping the race outcome.

Sports Director Nikolas Maes previews the race:
“We are aiming to perform with Matevž Govekar, Pau Miquel and Alessandro Borgo in what is really a gravel-style race. It’s a race where bad luck, crashes and positioning can make a huge difference, but I believe with the team we have we can battle with the best riders.
It’s not an extremely hard race in terms of climbing, but it’s very technical and constantly demanding because of the gravel sectors, so we need to stay attentive all day.
Matevž will be our main sprint option, but if the race becomes harder and more selective, then Alessandro and maybe also Pau can play their cards in the finale. I expect a reduced sprint from around 30 to 40 riders, and after the way we raced today, we definitely aim to fight for another victory.”

Alongside Borgo, Govekar and Pau, Bahrain Victorious lineup is completed by Capra, Skerl, Van der Meulen and Stolic.