Tadej POGACAR. 10 and praise. For you do. I'm doing it for you, he wrote with a marker on the number 1 he pinned on his back. He did it for Urska Zigart, his partner, who three years ago, on the eve of Liège, lost her mother. He makes yet another spectacular move, crossing the finish line with his index finger pointing to the sky. He does it for us, he does it for himself, updating his personal notebook full of results. One attack, just one, on the Côte de la Redoute (1.6 Km at 8.9%): game over. They saw him, heard him, breathed him, except for Remco Evenepoel, who was found behind, like never before: perhaps also out of condition. It's probable that something was said to him via radio, which he couldn't believe: he attacks and goes. A full-blown show, without palpitations, without stress, too easy for a rider already used to simplifying the complex. Today he updates the history books, for now with a lowercase "s". Seventh seasonal victory in fourteen days of racing; 95 in his career; 9th Monument (2 Flanders, 3 Liège and 4 Lombardy), on par with Fausto Coppi, Costante Girardengo and Sean Kelly, the only rider capable of obtaining eight consecutive podiums in Monuments. Ahead of him, with 11 Roger De Vlaeminck; at 19, the Immensity Eddy Merckx, who awaits him...

Giulio CICCONE. 10. Leads the small Italy that discovers itself great. He rides an incredible race, obtaining a second place not only with his head, but with his legs. He attacks on the Redoute just after Pogacar's surge that annihilates everyone. He catches his breath, waits, and relaunches. He goes away with only Ben Healy towards the finish line, for a second place of absolute technical value that enhances his technical baggage and his story as a rider. A third place at Lombardy behind the two phenomena Tadej and Remco, today he repeats himself at Liège: two podiums that truly matter, much more than a polka dot jersey.

Ben HEALY. 9. The 24-year-old Irish rider confirms he has now reached the elite of top cycling and demonstrates this in the toughest race in the world alongside Lombardy. He just needed to take measurements, better channel his exuberant attacking tendency. Today he attacks, at the right time, at the right moment, and his podium is more than deserved.

Simone VELASCO. 8. The 29-year-old XDS Astana rider has the strength to stay with the strongest and then finds the right opportunity to put his nose in front of everyone. A fourth place that does good to him and to all Italian cycling, which struggles and resists, fights and persists. More than resilience, this is true resistance!

Thibau NYS. 8. At only 22 years old, the Belgian talent from Lidl Trek confirms exceptional numbers. He's not brilliant today, but who is. He doesn't get lost in the group's whirlpools, he resists the waves and always re-emerges. Emerging.

Andrea BAGIOLI. 8. The 26-year-old Valtellina rider makes Lidl-Trek's Liège magical. It's true, the victory didn't arrive, but he places three riders in the top 6. Andrea has everything to constantly stay up front, he just needs to convince himself that he can do it.

Daniel MARTINEZ. 7. A race of endurance, to remain up front: he succeeds.

Thomas PIDCOCK. 6. He seemed to be in the right day to at least grab the podium, but in the end too many riders slip away.

Remco EVENEPOEL. 4. He was supposed to be Pogacar's great rival, the true and only challenger, but none of this happened, due to manifest inferiority. Justifications can be many, starting with a condition that seemed very good, but after six months of inactivity it's never simple to magically find the pedal stroke. He, Remco, believed in it, oh yes. "Give me half a star less in the predictions compared to him, but if I didn't think I could beat him, I wouldn't even have shown up". The words from the eve remain in the hotel, what gets on the bike is clearly not the real Remco, who is probably not as far ahead in condition as he thought he was. A comeback at Brabant, a very good Amstel, then the Arrow dampened his powder. It's enough that things don't go his way and he loses his bearings. It's clear it's not easy, but in certain moments his first opponent is himself.

Maxim VAN GILS. 17. The Belgian from Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe is forced to retire, clearly the fall at Amstel Gold Race (bad blow to the coccyx) significantly influenced him.

Stan VAN TRICHT. 6.5. The 25-year-old Belgian from Alpecin-Deceunich, winner of the Coppa Bernocchi a year ago, goes away with Mathis Le Berre (Arkéa-B&B Hotels), Hannes Wilksch (Tudor), Jack Haig (Bahrain Victorious), Sakarias Koller Løland (Uno-X Mobility), Kamiel Bonneu (Intermarchè-Wanty), Eduardo Sepúlveda (Lotto), Rayan Boulahoite, Valentin Retailleau (TotalEnergies), Ceriel Desal, Johan Meens, Henri-François Renard-Haquin (Wagner Bazin WB). The 33-year-old Sepulveda is the old man of the day's breakaway, the youngest is Boulahoite, class of 2004 in his first year as a professional. They are the ones who take on the task of battling from the start, before leaving space to the big names.