New race, same motorbike debate as Del Grosso reflects on Brabantse Pijl miss

The selection formed on the Moskesstraat with just over 30 kilometres to go, as Romain Grégoire lit things up and was soon joined by Benoît Cosnefroy, Del Grosso and others, including teammate Ramses Debruyne. It was the move everyone had been waiting for, and Del Grosso made sure he was in it.

“It was a good effort,” he said afterwards to Wielerflits. “But with the headwind in the final, it’s tough for a small group against the peloton. I still had something left for the sprint, but I just couldn’t get through.”

The break worked well but never truly escaped. The gap hovered, the tension built, and inside the final five kilometres the peloton closed in. With just over a kilometre to go, the catch was made at the foot of the S Bocht, ending the break’s hopes in sight of the finish.

What followed was a reset and a drag race uphill. Anders Foldager played it perfectly, launching late to take the biggest win of his career ahead of Quinten Hermans, while Cosnefroy held on for third after being out on the front.

Del Grosso rolled in 19th, a placing that barely told the story of how close he had come to something much bigger.

Yet beyond tactics and timing, another familiar talking point emerged. Several riders suggested the race convoy influenced the dynamics, particularly in the finale.

Del Grosso did not dismiss the idea. “Yeah… we definitely had moments behind the motorbike,” he admitted. “I don’t know how much the peloton had it, but we did. When those riders went and someone jumped across behind the motorbike, I knew I had to follow.”

It was a split-second decision making that underlines a growing reality in modern racing. Being in the right move is no longer just about legs and timing, but also about positioning relative to the race convoy.

“If you don’t have that motorbike, it’s very hard,” he added.

His comments echo a growing sentiment in the peloton. Just days earlier at Paris–Roubaix, Oliver Naesen claimed that motorbikes played a decisive role in Tadej Pogačar’s comeback, suggesting riders were effectively being pulled along at significantly higher speeds.

Former professional Jakob Fuglsang had already weighed in on the debate, stating, like Del Grosso, that motorbikes can play a decisive role in whether attacks succeed or fail.

Speaking to Feltet.dk he said: "It’s about attacking first. If you do that, you get the motorbike, and then they can’t catch you, even if they are four riders chasing together. Mathieu van der Poel probably wouldn’t have won E3 if he hadn’t had a motorbike in front. It was one rider against four.”

Naesen also made it clear that the issue is becoming increasingly significant, stressing that what happened at Roubaix was not an isolated incident.

“At times, it affects the outcome more than it should,” he said. “When the gaps are small, even a slight change in pace can decide everything.”