Alejandro Valverde wins his fifth Freccia Vallone, undisputed ruler of the Mur d'Huy, where the Murciano, in spite of his registry and his 37 springs, has been crushing every opponent for years, absolute record holder of victories in the Ardennes classic: his first success dates back to 2006, the other four he hit starting from 2014, a spectacular poker sequence that enriches the palmarés of the Spanish champion, one of the greatest cyclists around, a rarity of complete racer, in an increasingly specialized cycling, capable of fighting and winning both in the big stage races and in the classics.
Back from the two victorious Tours of Catalonia and the Basque Country, Valverde has always been a protagonist of the Ardennes triptych: always placed and never winner in the Amstel Gold Race, conquered his fifth Freccia by detaching the Irishman Daniel Martin in the final and the rest of the group, now aims to make poker in Liège-Bastogne-Liège, one of the five classics-monument of the international calendar which has already seen him triumph three times (2006-2008-2015).
Philippe Gilbert passed away, stopped by the consequences of the fall that had not prevented him from winning last Sunday's Amstel Gold Race, Valverde is the super favorite of the bookmakers who indicate Mikal Kwiatkoski and Daniel Martin as his most dangerous rivals in the Doyenne, the Decana , as cycling enthusiasts call Liège which is the oldest classic in world cycling whose record of victories – five – is still in the hands of Eddy Merckx.
