Bicycle Racing News and Opinion,
Sunday, September 21, 2025
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2024 Tour de France | 2024 Giro d'Italia
The Statue of Liberty is no longer saying, 'Give me your poor, your tired, your huddled masses.' She's got a baseball bat and yelling, 'You want a piece of me?' - Robin Williams
Bill & Carol McGann's book The Story of the Tour de France, Vol 1: 1903 - 1975 is available in print, Kindle eBook & audiobook versions. To get your copy, just click on the Amazon link on the right.
Current racing:
- September 17 - 21: Tour de Luxembourg
- September 21 - 28: World Cycling Championships
Upcoming racing:
- September 28 - October 5: Tour de Langkawi
- October 3: Mûnsterland Giro
- October 4: Giro dell'Emilia
- October 5: Coppa Agostoni
- October 6: Coppa Bernocchi
- October 7: Binche-Chimay-Binche
- October 7: Tre Valli Varesine
- October 9: Gran Piemonte
- October 11: Il Lombardia
- October 12: Paris-Tours
Latest completed racing:
- September 20: Super 8 Classic
- September 19: Kampioenschap van Vlaanderen
- September 17: GP de Wallonie
- August 23 - September 14: Vuelta a España
- September 14: Grand Prix Cycliste de Montréal
- September 14: GP de Fourmies
- September 14: Trofeo Matteotti
- September 13: Memorial Marco Pantani
- September 12: Grand Prix Cycliste de Québec
- September 2 - 7: Tour of Britain
- August 31: Bretagne Classic-Ouest France
- August 26 - 29: Tour Poitou Charentes en Nouvelle Aquitaine
- August 20 - 24: Renewi Tour
- August 19 - 22: Tour du Limousin
- August 17: Hamburg Cyclassics
- August 17: La Polynormande
- August 12 - 16: Tour of Denmark
- August 15: Circuit Franco-Belge
We posted the report from stage winner Ethan Hayter's Team Soudal Quick-Step with the results.
Here's the report from second-place and new GC leader Brandon McNulty's UAE Team Emirates-XRG:
Brandon McNulty powered to an impressive second place in today’s individual time trial at the Tour de Luxembourg, a result that elevated him into the overall race lead with just one stage remaining. Teammate Nils Politt also delivered a fine performance, placing 7th on the stage, as Ethan Hayter (Soudal-Quickstep) took an impressive victory.
Brandon McNulty time trialing at the 2025 Tour of Poland. Sirotti photo
The Stage 4 time trial, covering 26.3km around Niederanven, featured rolling terrain and a technical finale. McNulty executed a near-perfect ride, finishing 27 seconds behind stage winner Hayter. His effort propelled him into the yellow leader’s jersey, positioning UAE Team Emirates–XRG at the head of the general classification with one decisive stage still to come.
McNulty: “Being in the leader’s jersey is always nice. It was a hard TT, but I executed my plan on the road and today there was just one guy stronger. Tomorrow, I think we can set out to defend the jersey and we have a strong team to do that. It’s an advantage for us to have some brilliant teammates at the race.”
Here's the Tour of Luxembourg report from Team Groupama-FDJ:
The Groupama-FDJ cycling team took part in the fourth stage of the Tour de Luxembourg this Saturday without any real goals in mind. While Ethan Hayter claimed victory and Brandon McNulty took the leader’s jersey, Romain Grégoire and his teammates already had their eyes glued to the final stage, heading to Luxembourg, on Sunday.
After a “bad day” yesterday, which took him out of contention for the general classification, Romain Grégoire had no particular ambitions on Saturday during the decisive time trial of the Tour de Luxembourg. On a demanding and relatively hilly 26-kilometre course around Niederanven, it was Enzo Paleni who set the best performance of the day for the Groupama-FDJ cycling team, finishing twenty-second, 1’47 behind winner Ethan Hayter, but barely twenty-five seconds from the top 10.
Enzo Paleni in 2023. Sirotti photo
“Enzo wanted to do it well,” confirmed Benoît Vaugrenard. “For everyone else, including Romain, the goal was to try to “recover” a bit after the first three days during which they worked hard.” “I was already thinking about tomorrow,” added Romain, who wore the yellow jersey for two days but was pushed outside the top 20 overall yesterday. “I had nothing to gain today, so I tried to “recover” a little in order to do a good stage tomorrow.”
Serious gaps were made on Saturday during the time trial, and Brandon McNulty took the lead in the general classification. The Tour de Luxembourg will conclude Sunday in the streets of the country’s capital. “We’ll finish with a short twelve-kilometre circuit including a very steep climb one kilometre from the finish,” Benoît explained. “It’s a stage that suits us well; David won it twice, and we’ll try to go for it again. Very bad weather is forecast, but everyone is motivated!” “I took the opportunity to recon the finish this morning, before the time trial, and I think we can do something great tomorrow,” Romain added. “Let’s hope that the legs will be there this time”.
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We posted the report from second-place Matthew Brennan's Team Visma | Lease a Bike with the results.
Here's the report from race winner Arnaud De Lie's Team Lotto:
Arnaud De Lie sprinted to an impressive victory today at SUPER 8, capping off a day where the entire team played a decisive role. From the very beginning of the race, our riders showed their intent by taking responsibility in the peloton and keeping the race under control. Every move was closely monitored and in the finale the team delivered De Lie in the perfect position to fight for the win. “I saw Jordi Meeus launch his sprint on the right side, and I managed to take his wheel. In the final meters, Matthew Brennan was also incredibly fast. I’m extremely happy to take victory in the SUPER 8. It’s a very beautiful race. The experience I gained here three years ago definitely helped me today”, De Lie reflects.
Arnaud De Lie just beats Matthew Brennan
De Lie was also quick to credit the work of his teammates: "It was truly a perfect race from us as a team. They all did an incredible job. When we ride like this, it’s amazing. It really makes me enjoy the bike!”
Here's the Super 8 Classic report from third-place Jordi Meeus' Team Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe:
After a tough 200 kilometers through Belgium on classic terrain and Flemish roads, Jordi Meeus took third place in the Super 8 Classic (1.Pro).
At the finish in Haacht, Jordi was part of the leading group of only around 20 riders who decided the victory among themselves. Along the way, the 27-year-old had to fight again and again. On the short and steep climbs between 50 and 20 kilometers before the finish, however, he managed to come back several times, while other sprinters had long since been beaten.
In the final sprint, Jordi only had to give way to Arnaud De Lie and Matthew Brennan. "Of course you always want more, but I'm satisfied because I was only beaten by two very fast guys. After the tough race, I didn't have the strength to win. That's why I'm satisfied. There are no regrets and I can look back on a good race. I didn't have the best feeling yesterday and I'm glad it went the way it did," said the 2022 winner.
Here's Jordi Meeus winning the Super 8 Classic (then the Primus Classic) in 2022.
For Filip Maciejuk, on the other hand, it was another day in the leading group. Once again, the Pole spent most of the race ahead of the field and was able to give Jordi a little help after catching him before his energy reserves were exhausted.
In addition to Jordi and Filipauch, Danny van Poppel, Jonas Koch, Anton Palzer and Sebastian Putz were at the start for Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe. Sam Welsford, who was also scheduled to start, had crashed the day before at the Kampioenschap van Vlaanderen and was unable to compete.
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Here's the Super 8 Classic report from fourth-place Ben Swift's Team INEOS Grenadiers:
Ben Swift sprinted to a strong fourth place after a front-foot performance from the INEOS Grenadiers at the SUPER 8 Classic.
On a wet day in Belgium the team was able to place three riders in the front group which contested the finish into Haacht, with Swift finishing well in the final meters.
Ben Swift time trialing at the 2023 Giro d'Italia. Sirotti photo
Artem Shmidt had pushed on up the road early in the day’s four-man break, which combined well and was eventually reeled in with 33 kilometers to go. The American continued to contribute and support his teammates before coming home just outside the top 10.
Michal Kwiatkowski was also present in the front split, which had formed with 80km of racing to go. The Pole launched a solo move of his own with 16km remaining, spending 4km off the front, but unable to open up a gap.
In the final sprint it was Arnaud De Lie (Lotto) who edged out Matthew Brennan (Visma | Lease a Bike) in a tight finish.
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And here's the Super 8 Classic report from Team Soudal Quick-Step:
Saturday marked the fastest ever edition of the Super 8 Classic, one of the last Belgian races of the month, and this despite the combination of hilly course, rain and wet roads that ended up making for one of the toughest editions in recent memory.
A strong leading group formed moments after the race left behind Brakel, the cue for the teams hoping for a bunch sprint to take over the reins in the peloton. Everything changed around 80 kilometers from the finish, when a couple of attacks that came just before the Moskesstraat split the bunch, leaving a dozen or so riders in pursuit of the breakaway, which they later joined.
That group continued to push on, averaging more than 47km/h, and despite the chasers being initially just 20 seconds behind them, they held on to that gap and even increased it by the time they arrived in Haacht, where the race concluded with the victory of Arnaud De Lie (Lotto). Louis Vervaeke, who pinned on a number for the first time since completing the Vuelta a España, was the first Soudal Quick-Step rider to cross the line, part of a group that finished 50 seconds behind the winner.
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