Amstel Gold Race 2021 - Who is riding? When is it on TV? Who can take Mathieu van der Poel's crown?
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ByTom Owen
Updated 02/04/2021 at 15:40 GMT
Amstel Gold, the 'Ardennes Classic' that isn't really in the Ardennes, kicks off a beautiful and tough block of one-day racing where climbing-puncheurs traditionally come to the fore. With no race in 2020, the title has been held by Mathieu van der Poel for two seasons, but he's not expected to defend his crown at the 2021 edition. Who will step in and take the top spot?
Amstel Gold Race 2019, Mathieu van der Poel
Image credit: Getty Images
The 54th edition of the Amstel Gold Race will run later this month and opens up the block of one-day races known as ‘Ardennes week’, despite not being an Ardennes race in the strictest sense.
The race takes place in the Dutch province of Limburg and has WorldTour status.
The race didn’t run last year due to the Covid-19 pandemic, so the reigning champion remains Mathieu van der Poel, who won in spectacular style in 2019.
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‘The greatest ambush ever’ - Mathieu van der Poel takes impossible Amstel Gold Race win
When is the Amstel Gold Race?
The 2021 edition of the Amstel Gold Race takes place on April 18.
How can I watch Amstel Gold Race?
The race will be live on Eurosport and available ad-free on the Eurosport Player.
Who is racing Amstel Gold Race?
At the moment Van der Poel is not expected to race Amstel and defend the title he has held for two years. His arch rival, Wout van Aert, is however and must surely come in as the favourite.
Michael Valgren, champion here in 2018, returns for another tilt at the top podium spot, while Team DSM bring a firepower-packed roster including Tiesj Benoot, Romain Bardet and British prospect, Mark Donovan.
Mach Hirschi has told press he is focused this year on trying to win in the Ardennes classics before switching modes to assist Tadej Pogačar at Le Tour. As such, expect him to come out all guns blazing to make the most of the opportunity to lead at Amstel.
Michael Matthews and Luka Mezgec come into the race as BikeExchange’s two leaders, while Deceuninck has yet to name a full provisional squad. At the moment Mauri Vansevenant and Andrea Bagioli are expected for the Wolfpack, but not Julian Alaphilippe.
Ineos have Tom Pidcock lined up to start, but they are another team whose full line-up is not yet confirmed. Pidcock is still very much discovering what sort of races he can perform well in at the WorldTour level, while Richard Carapaz is far from being a classics specialist but is expected to participate.
Trek-Segafredo are expected to bring Milan-Sanremo champion, Jasper Stuyven.
What is the route for the Amstel Gold Race?
This year the course is 258km long with a jaw dropping 35 climbs packed into that distance. What marks the Amstel Gold as distinct from the Tour of Flanders is that none of the climbs in Amstel are cobbled, unlike the fearsome ‘hellingen’ associated with the Tour of Flanders.
The final part of the race happens on a circuit, so some climbs feature more than once – with the definitive ascent, the Cauberg, being taken on three times.
Who will win Amstel Gold Race?
Max Schachmann won the general classification in Paris-Nice for the second year in a row last month, so we know he is in fantastic form – and he should also be high on confidence with a prestigious win under his belt already. He has historically also gone very well in Ardennes week. In 2019, his results of fifth in Amstel and Flèche Wallonne were followed up by a podium at Liège-Bastogne-Liège – and stand as testament to his ability in this block of racing.
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