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Mark Cavendish is a favorite for Wednesday's Ghent-Wevelgem
Just two and a half weeks after scoring a brilliant sprint victory in the longest of the European single-day races, Milan-San Remo, Mark Cavendish of the Columbia-Highroad team looks all set to add another classic to his burgeoning list of wins. If he wins the 203km Ghent-Wevelgem on Wednesday, the 23-year-old Brit will be following in the footsteps of Italy’s greatest sprinter, Mario Cipollini, who won at San Remo, and also won at Wevelgem three times.
Ghent-Wevelgem winners
2008. Óscar Freire ( Spain) Rabobank
2007. Marcus Burghardt ( Germany) T-Mobile Team
2006. Thor Hushovd ( Norway) Crédit Agricole
2005. Nico Mattan ( Belgium) Davitamon-Lotto
2004. Tom Boonen ( Belgium) Quick Step-Davitamon
2003. Andreas Klier ( Germany) T-Mobile Team
2002. Mario Cipollini ( Italy) Acqua & Sapone
2001. George Hincapie ( the United States) Us Postal
2000. Geert Van Bondt ( Belgium)
1999. Tom Steels ( Belgium) Mapei
1998. Frank Vandenbroucke ( Belgium)
1997. Philippe Gaumont ( France)
1996. Tom Steels ( Belgium) Mapei
1995. Lars Michaelsen ( Denmark)
1994. Wilfried Peeters ( Belgium)
1993. Mario Cipollini ( Italy)
1992. Mario Cipollini ( Italy)
1991. Djamolidine Abdoujaparov ( Uzbekistan)
1990. Herman Frison ( Belgium)
1989. Gerrit Solleveld ( the Netherlands)
1988. Seán Kelly ( Ireland)
1987. Teun van Vliet ( the Netherlands)
1986. Guido Bontempi ( Italy)
1985. Eric Vanderaerden ( Belgium)
1984. Guido Bontempi ( Italy)
1983. Leo van Vliet ( the Netherlands)
1982. Frank Hoste ( Belgium)
1981. Jan Raas ( the Netherlands)
1980. Henk Lubberding ( the Netherlands)
1979. Francesco Moser ( Italy)
1978. Ferdi Van Den Haute ( Belgium)
1977. Bernard Hinault ( France)
1976. Freddy Maertens ( Belgium)
1975. Freddy Maertens ( Belgium)
1974. Barry Hoban ( the United Kingdom)
1973. Eddy Merckx ( Belgium)
1972. Roger Swerts ( Belgium)
1971. Georges Pintens ( Belgium)
1970. Eddy Merckx ( Belgium)
1969. Willy Vekemans ( Belgium)
1968. Walter Godefroot ( Belgium)
1967. Eddy Merckx ( Belgium)
1966. Herman Van Springel ( Belgium)
1965. Noel De Pauw ( Belgium)
1964. Jacques Anquetil ( France)
1963. Benoni Beheyt ( Belgium)
1962. Rik Van Looy ( Belgium)
1961. Frans Aerenhouts ( Belgium)
1960. Frans Aerenhouts ( Belgium)
1959. Léon Van Daele ( Belgium)
1958. Noel Fore ( Belgium)
1957. Rik Van Looy ( Belgium)
1956. Rik Van Looy ( Belgium)
1955. Briek Schotte ( Belgium)
1954. Rolf Graf ( Switzerland)
1953. Raymond Impanis ( Belgium)
1952. Raymond Impanis ( Belgium)
1951. André Rosseel ( Belgium)
1950. Briek Schotte ( Belgium)
1949. Marcel Kint ( Belgium)
1948. Valère Ollivier ( Belgium)
1947. Maurice Desimpelaere ( Belgium)
1946. Ernest Sterckx ( Belgium)
1945. Robert Van Eenaeme ( Belgium)
1944-1940 (No race)
1939. André Declerck ( Belgium)
1938. Hubert Godart ( Belgium)
1937. Robert Van Eenaeme ( Belgium)
1936. Robert Van Eenaeme ( Belgium)
1935. Albert Depreitre ( Belgium)
1934. Gustave Van Bell ( Belgium)
Cipollini was a big man, but he never had a huge problem making it over the course’s steep cobbled climb over the Kemmelberg — which is climbed twice because of a double loop some 50km before the finish.
If he wins, Cavendish would be following his Columbia teammates, George Hincapie and Marcus Burghardt, who have each taken the top spot at Wevelgem. On Wednesday, Hincapie and Burghardt say they are happy to lead Cavendish to another success — or even ready to play a tactical game that could give either the American or his German teammate a repeat victory.
“Cav' is the clear favorite to win,” Hincapie told VeloNews. “And if he makes it over the Kemmel the second time — and there’s no reason he shouldn’t because he’s climbing awesome this year — there’s a lot going for him to win. I’ll probably be with him the whole race, or maybe go with someone the second time up the Kemmel, and I would sit on. I could see something like that happening. And that way we don’t have to chase.
“Or maybe Burghardt goes with a group of say five guys over the Kemmel, and he doesn’t work because Cav' is behind. That would be the ideal situation; the break stays, or it gets caught and there’s a field sprint.”
The team had a similar plan last year, and there was a field sprint, won by Rabobank’s Oscar Freire, but Cavendish got tossed around in the sprint and finished out of the top 10. “It was a hectic finish and there was only Roger (Hammond) and I there, and I’d been in a break. So it didn’t work out,” Hincapie said.
“He was super disappointed last year because he thought he threw a big chance away. He was so upset. People all bunched up in front of him, but that’s how Ghent-Wevelgem is, but now he has the confidence to get through.
“But this year’s Cav' is not last year’s Cav'. Yes, he had stage wins at De Panne (as he did again last week). But he hadn’t won stages of the Giro and the Tour, and he hadn’t won Milan-San Remo. Now, he’s a lot more established and has that confidence you need.”
There are others in the field who could challenge Cavendish, but riders like Wouter Weylandt (Quick Step), Graeme Brown (Rabobank), Gerald Ciolek (Milram) and Robbie McEwen (Katusha) are not in the same league as the Manx Flyer — when he gets a clear shot.
After his San Remo upset, Cavendish was immediately congratulated by his new mentor, Erik Zabel, and even Cipollini. The Italian said, “Cavendish is something special, There’s never been a sprinter like him.”
Perhaps we’ll get another demonstration of his rocket-type speed on Wednesday afternoon.
