After his two victories in the Criterium du Dauphiné, Nacer Bouhanni (Cofidis) confirmed that he will be a strong contender in both the French championships and the Tour de France when he won the traditional warm-up race Nacer Bouhanni. In a crash-marred sprint, the Frenchman was in a class of his own as he easily passed Kris Boeckmans (Lotto Soudal) and had plenty of time to celebrate his second victory in the Belgian one-day race.

Nacer Bouhanni got the 2015 season off to a slow start. However, he never lost the confidence and always believed that he would reach top condition in time for the Tour de France which is his big season goal.

It seems that the Cofidis rider has timed everything perfectly and he is now back at full speed less than two weeks before the start of the the world’s biggest race. A few weeks ago he won two stages in the Criterium du Dauphiné and today he confirmed his excellent form by powering to his second victory in the Halle-Ingooigem semi-classic.

"We caught the breakaway one kilometer from the finish," he told Directvelo. "For the sprint, I took the wheel of Kris Boeckmans. I launched my effort with 180 meters to go, because there was a headwind. I'm happy to win."

Bouhanni now turns his attention to the French championships.

"That's why I will do around 70 kilometers of training behind the car in order to get to a total of 270 kilometers," he told Het Nieuwsblad. "It is indeed true that I won here in 2012 and the following Sunday I was allowed to wear the French tricolor. This race is not to be underestimated. The finale was very aggressive and there was even added an extra climb. That didn't make it any easier. This victory already gives me confidence for Sunday."