Mark Cavendish has said he was disappointed with his 2nd place at Grote prijs Jean-Pierre Monseré (1.1) in Belgium on Sunday.
The British rider, who almost left the sport last season,
was beaten to victory in Roeselare by Tim Merlier; the Alpecin-Fenix rider jumping early in the sprint and opening a gap.
While Cavendish was must faster than
everyone else in the sprint, Merlier’s gap was too big and he took his second
win in five days after also winning Le Samyn on Tuesday of last week.
However, Cavendish looked in great form during the race; a marked difference to recent seasons when he has often seemed under pressure and not enjoying his racing as he has struggled to come back from contracting Epstein-Barr.
Having returned to Deceuninck-QuickStep this season, after securing a sponsor to help meet his salary, the team clearly has confidence in his ability to win as it worked for long stretches on the front on Sunday in a bid to set him up for the sprint.
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“To be honest I kind of forgot how it was to be in a
sprint,” Cavendish said of the final sprint, with the victory secured by Merlier
the moment he jumped early in the sprint and got a gap.
“I am a bit disappointed, because the team controlled the race and I felt really good, but Merlier was clever when he launched it,” added Cavendish, who is searching for his first win since falling ill and having last taken a victory three years ago.
Cavendish continued: “Going into the final, Bert (Van Lerberghe) got sandwiched, which is what happens when a bunch of guys all go for the same bit of road.
“I reacted when Tim went on the right side, but the gap was already there and that was that.”
“I’m glad to be on the podium, but at the same time I’m
disappointed, as I said. Now I will do Nokere Koerse, which is a race I never
did before, and see how things go there.
“I love racing in Flanders and I want to enjoy every
single moment of it. We will keep trying in the next races; we’ll keep having
fun and see where that takes us.”
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