Liege-Bastogne-Liege Race Review

Race Winner: Maxim Iglinskiy (Astana) reeled in Vincenzo Nibali (Liquigas-Cannondale) in the final km after Nibali had attacked on a descent 20 km from the end and opened up a gap that stretched as far as 45 seconds.

Other podium finishers: Nibali did hold on for second place (another km and that would have been dicey). Iglinskiy's teammate Enrico Gasparotto took 3^rd to finish a great Ardennes campaign (also won Amstel Gold last Sunday).

Story of the day (non-winner category): Defending champion Philippe Gilbert (BMC) was cracked by the Nibali attack and rolled in 16^th. After using this week to launch his dominating season last year, Gilbert has been nowhere near the same form. He currently is winless on the season as he struggles to get into winning condition.

US tv coverage review: Live coverage? There was none. The race is airing on tape delay tonight on NBC Sports Network. As for the rest of us in the US, it was off to find European streams. The quality varied greatly and many cut in and out. Can we get this right next season, please?

Other odds and ends: The three Ardennes classics were taken by three different riders: Gasparotto last Sunday at Amstel Gold, Joaquim Rodriguez (Katusha) took Fleche Wallonne and Iglinskiy today. A nice change compared to what happened last year with Gilbert owning this part of the season... Surprisingly, the Schleck brothers (RadioShack-Nissan) were nowhere to be found at the end of the race. Outside of the Grand Tours (specifically the Tour de France), Liege Bastogne Liege is the only race the Schlecks seem to care about and they were never up to the task today. They were both off the back of the front group before Nibali's attack... As for Nibali's attack, it was a great tactic. He is one of the best descenders in the peloton and is a very good time trialer. He also has no finishing sprint and had no teammates. To win, he had to make something happen. He did, it just didn't work for him... In addition to the two podium finishers, Astana had one more rider make the final group with Robert Kiserlovski finishing 14^th. Just a great day for that team.

What's next: It's prep time for the Giro d'Italia. Many teams have their sprinters for that race in Turkey right now for the Presidential Tour of Turkey. Many other contenders there will be in the field for the Tour of Romandie, starting Tuesday in Switzerland. Others will take time off prepping before the Giro starts on May 5. For those not going to the Giro, Tour de France prep is starting. For many, that will be the Tour of California starting May 13.

Liege Bastogne Liege Power Poll

Liege Bastogne Liege is cycling's oldest classic. This year's race takes place Sunday and airs in the US on tape delay Sunday night on NBC Sports Network. Those who are brave can navigate the world of streaming video from Europe and watch live. steephill.tv has many options if that is your preferred method.

Ranking of the most likely to win cycling's oldest classic. Simple and easy. If only that was so. Counting down from 10 to 1.

10 Ryder Hesjedal (Garmin-Barracuda) – Has shown well with top 10-15 finishes here in the past and earlier this week. His best chance is to attack from a distance and make it stick (like Andy Schleck did in 2009) as he won't be able to climb explosively with the top guys at the end.

9 Roman Kreuziger (Astana) – Kreuziger has skipped the other Ardennes races in favor of Giro d'Italia prep at the Giro del Trentino. That said, he is on the startlist for Sunday's race and has had good results here in the past. I expect him to be in the final selection, just not to win.

8 Vincenzo Nibali (Liquigas-Cannondale) – With Peter Sagan not here, Nibali is the unquestioned captain here for once. Of course, other than being a great all-around rider, he has one great skill: descending. And that skill doesn't win races like this without some sort of finishing sprint. And Nibali has no sprint.

7 Damiano Cunego (Lampre) – Cunego is also at the Giro del Trentino, but he has won the similar fall classic Giro di Lombardia three times and seems to be on good form as his stage win over Kreuziger earlier today would suggest.

6 Frank Schleck (RadioShack-Nissan-Trek) – The Schelcks always target this race. That said, Andy has looked like he doesn't care about anything except the tour since winning this in 2009 and Frank has some form (12^th at Amstel) meaning the Schleck double punch plus Chris Horner could get one of them to the top step. I expect Frank is the most likely of the three (though don't discount Horner).

5 Jelle Vanendert (Lotto-Belisol) – Great form thus far in the Ardennes with a runner up finish at Amstel and a 4^th place today at Fleche Wallonne. He is certainly a threat to win, but, in his first season as a leader, he still had a bit to learn before he can win these type races. I expect him to win Liege in the future, just not this year.

4 Alejandro Valverde (Movistar) – Former two-time winner has not had great form thus far, but cannot be written off. I suspect he will be at the front of the field and if this turns into a 100m sprint and he's there, its over.

3 Bauke Mollema (Rabobank) – It certainly appears as though Mollema has displaced Robert Gesink as Rabobank's new hope. With top ten finishes in both Amstel and Fleche Wallonne and a deep team of climbers, Mollema should have a good chance in this race. The question is if he is explosive enough to finish off a race like this. He hasn't been at Amstel or Fleche Wallonne.

2 Joaquim Rodriguez (Katusha) – The winner today at Fleche Wallonne. That said, his results in this race have been surprisingly average given his two previous runner up finishes at Fleche Wallonne and a previous top 10 at Amstel. Seems to be in great form, only his lack of past success here keeps him from the number one spot.

1 Philippe Gilbert (BMC) – Defending champion of the entire Ardennes season, this year has not been great compared to last year. Gilbert has yet to win, but he seems to be rounding into form after a 3^rd place finish at Fleche Wallonne. I suspect his form is getting back to where it needs to be meaning he will be the overwhelming favorite on Sunday, especially if Rodriguez can't find his form once again.

Paris-Roubaix Race Review

Race winner: Tom Boonen (Omega-Pharma QuickStep) soloed away from the lead group with 54 km to go and celebrated alone in the finishing velodrome as he tied the record with his 4^th Paris-Roubaix title and finished off the greatest cobbled classic season of all-time. Boonen also won Ronde van Vlaanderen (Tour of Flanders) last week and the prep races at E3 Harelbake and Gent-Wevelgem to sweep the season. In addition, his team won both of the short Belgian cobbled stage races. Total domination.

Other podium finishers: Sebastian Turgot (Europcar) got the best result of his career, winning a five-man sprint for second in a photo finish. In third was Alessandro Ballan (BMC) for the second straight week after finishing 3^rd last week in Flanders.

Story of the day (non-winner category): Boonen's attack came from 54 km out with teammate Nikki Terpstra. What the heck was everyone else doing? On twitter during the race I along with everyone else questioned going on the attack from that far out (we were wrong), but I also questioned the wisdom of allowing the race favorite to get a gap no matter how far away (I was right). The peloton just fell asleep in letting Boonen get away and then over every cobbled section he pulled further away. Bad tactical race by pretty much everyone.

US tv coverage review: For the second straight week, NBC Sports Network offered live coverage. This week, much better, once they came on the air. The commercial issues I brought up last week were not issues and the broadcast as a whole was tighter and better than it was in Flanders last week. That said, there were still problems, one of which was in the network's control and one of which wasn't. The main problem was that the winning move by Boonen was missed as was the pivotal Arenberg Trench because the coverage hadn't started yet. That will be rectified by a 3-hour replay tonight, but it still needs to be shown. Part of that though is that the race was really fast this year. When I say fast I mean second fastest ever and in most years the distance from where Boonen attacked would have been covered.

Other odds and ends: There was a 12 man breakaway entering the Arenberg Trench that dropped to 8 immediately because of a crash... Speaking of crashes, there weren't many this year like in previous years, but there were still a lot of punctures and mechanical issues. Among those felled by either crashes, mechanicals or punctures were Sylvain Chavanel (OPQS), Pippo Pozatto (Farnese Vini) and Thor Hushovd (BMC), all of whom would have liked their chances (though Chavanel wasn't going to be winning considering his teammate Boonen's form) had they made the finishing group... Defending champion Johann Van Summeran (Garmin-Barracuda) finished 9^th place in a spirited defense of his title. He showed that his surprise win last season wasn't a fluke in his first go as a team leader.

What's next: The Ardennes beckon and with it comes a different kind of rider to threaten. Gone will be the hardmen that dominate on the cobblestones and in come the climby types with hillier races and no more cobblestones. The next couple of weeks bring the Amstel Gold, Fleche Wallone and then the fourth monument of the season: Liege-Bastogne-Liege. Last year, Philippe Gilbert (BMC) swept the Ardennes, but he has not been in good form at all this season so far. Beyond him, we will see our first appearance of the season of the Schleck brothers (Radio Shack-Nissan-Trek) though the favorite might be Joaquim Rodriguez. Rodriguez won two stages as the Vuelta a Pais Vasco last week and a stage at Tirreno-Adriatico and is a threat anywhere there is a steep hill near the finish..