Grand Prix Monseré, Hugo Hofstetter 3rd
Hugo Hofstetter 3rd in the sprint of the Grand Prix Jean-Pierre Monséré signs the 22nd podium of the Arkéa-Samsic team, his fourth in a personal capacity. Donavan Grondin was 7th.
Photo Getty Images
On the line
“I sprinted with the intention to win after a Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl rider left a hole, and I had to fill it in order to get back to Arnaud De Lie’s wheel. I think that this effort cost me in the final, because I made my effort probably a bit too early. Maybe I should have stayed in the wheels more, but decisions in a final like this one are made in thousandths of a second. I wanted to try, but it was certainly too much effort. The race was not easy with the wind, here the races are never easy because of the wind, the cobbles. It’s always nervous, it rubs a lot. Afterwards I try to save as much energy as possible in competition. I would like to thank all my team-mates for their involvement and the work they have done for me”.
The debrief
“Hugo has once again shown his consistency in the races in Belgium since the beginning of the season, and it is clear that the team has done a good job for him. The team was seen a lot at the front in the last twenty kilometres of the race and maybe at that point we should have been a little less greedy in terms of effort, indeed I would have preferred Hugo to have a little more manpower at the final pack, but there were only five of us at the start, that also counts in the final of a race. The guys played the game 100% in Hugo’s favour. We continue to make progress on the one-day races in Belgium, and the goal remains to win a race in this country by Bredene Koksijde Classic next week”.