Wout van Aert (Jumbo-Visma) narrowly avoided crashing on the home stretch in Benidorm, wobbling against the barriers as Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Deceuninck) crossed the line for victory just in front of him.
The near-miss changed nothing of the outcome of the race, and was perhaps itself a product of Van Aert trailing his old foe through the final bend and into a very short home straight.
Given the layout, victory was almost certain to go to the rider who got to the tarmac first, and Van Aert, despite winding up behind Van der Poel, had to content himself with simply staying on his bike.
“When I saw the images again, it was even more dangerous than I first thought,” Van Aert said after the podium ceremony.
“I was still in Mathieu’s wheel, so I wanted to sprint to the line, but because of that gentle corner I suddenly came very close to the barriers. Fortunately, I was able to hold back just in time.”
The final stretch didn’t catch Van Aert by surprise. On the contrary, he was aware of the need to have the lead heading into the pair of planks that led to the final bends and the home straight. Only, he let it slip.
Van Aert accelerated on the long tarmac drag mid-lap to take control from a front group of four, but Van der Poel came bursting through on a tight section through the trees.
“I regret a bit my tactics,” Van Aert admitted. “I had to just go all-in from the climb to last park and try to hold the lead. But I was just more focused to stay in the front instead of setting a hard pace.
“Like this, Mathieu surprised me a little bit, with passing me in the park, and I couldn’t make it up anymore.”
Speaking in Flemish, he added: “That’s probably what I’m most disappointed about. I was just a little too busy keeping the lead and not winning the race.”
Van Aert hadn’t had the best of starts, forced to sit behind several riders as Van der Poel took the hole shot and set the tone on the opening lap. The Belgian was also unhappy with his sand riding, mostly having to dismount for the long sandpit that Van der Poel rode through.
Van der Poel had been hindered by a back injury but the pair appear well-matched a fortnight out from the World Championship, where Van Aert will be looking to level the scores at four rainbow jerseys apiece.
“The legs were good, but I should have made the race harder,” Van Aert said, before assessing his old foe.
“He was certainly the Van der Poel against whom I fought duels during the Christmas period. He seemed better to me than in Zonhoven and Koksijde, for example.”
