Bert-Jan Lindeman’s riding in the 58th Brabantse Pijl has not been rewarded with a top result. The 28-year-old rider from the Dutch province of Drenthe was very alert and well-placed all day. He attacked in the final with, amongst others, the later winner Tim Wellens. On the penultimate climb, Lindeman tried to get away from the chasing group, but got caught two kilometres from the line. Paul Martens eventually finished in eleventh place.

In the classic from Leuven to Overijse, which contained no less than 27 climbs, a breakaway was established quite fast. The group enjoyed a maximum lead of seven minutes. Partly due to the work of Team LottoNL-Jumbo, this lead was halved quite quickly, after which Bert-Jan Lindeman showed himself in the final with a few attacks.

“This is a pity, a real pity”, Lindeman sighed after the race. "The feeling was very good and my legs were super. I had hoped for the same situation as last year, when I finished fifth, but it wasn’t the case. It’s a pity that I didn’t get a satisfactory result here this time, but I hope to continue the good feeling into the Amstel Gold Race. That is what I have trained for.”

Sports director Addy Engels was very pleased with the way Lindeman had raced. “Bert-Jan was very strong today. I think he was even stronger than last year when he finished fifth. But the situation has to be in his favour and that wasn’t the case today. He rode a super race. The way he raced meant he had a chance to get a good result. He tried it on the penultimate climb, but couldn’t make the difference anymore. He has done everything he could and that’s good to see.”