Amstel and Fleche Wallonne -Gilbert Does the Double

A few weeks ago, everyone was expecting Fabian Cancellara to cash in on his recent good form and come away with some Classics victories. It wasn't to be however, as Spartacus found himself a marked man and unable to get the wins. With the Classics moving out of the Northern flatlands and into the Ardennes region, it was the turn of Phillipe Gilbert to bear the burden of top favorite. It didn't seem to bother Pip much though, and he kept a cool head to bag two wins in four days.

On Sunday we had the Amstel Gold race.

Which is famous for its narrow, twisty roads and short, sharp climbs. In fact watching the race I decided it looked a bit like the roads near Thixendale.

Although that Andy Schleck had a bit of a go off the front, he was caught on the final climb, thanks to a well coordinated chase behind. Joaquin Rodrigez, (or J-Rod as I like to call him) opened-up the sprint, but Gilbert was super strong and had plenty of time to take in the scenery as he crossed the line.

With the last Velogames transfer window now closed, I was feeling pretty smug about how my team did at Amstel. Getting 6 riders in the top 12 meant I could put some distance between the Bile Beans and Evil Dr Chan.

Next up, on Wednesday, it was La Flèche Wallonne, (or the Walloon Arrow race, as I like to call it). Pip did the business once again,  J-Rod was in second spot again with Sammy Sanchez rounding out the podium.

More good news for the Bile Beans then! A 1-2-3 earned me enough points to open up my lead at the head of the pack slightly. Evil Dr Chan also had a good race with a Gilbert, Sanchez, Vino combo, not such good news for the Panterloons though, with another zero score for the day.

With just one race to go in the Fantasy Classics season, it looks like the Bile Beans may have already done enough to secure the overal mini-league. I'll still be hoping for another strong performance from the squad at Liege-Bastogne-Liege on Sunday, just so I can be extra smug. And we'll get to see if Gilbert can do the triple by wining all three of the Ardennes Classics.