Due to an inflammation of the oesophagus, Ardennes captain Jelle Vanendert will be absent on the start line of tomorrow's Brabantse Pijl. Instead, Lotto-Belisol hope to see his younger brother Dennis and the talented Tim Wellens in the mix in the final preparation race for the hilly classics.

Jelle Vanendert was the most consistent in the Ardennes classics last year with top 10 performances in both the Amstel Gold Race, Fleche Wallonne and Liege-Bastogne-Liege. This year he hopes to do even better but with illness forcing him out of the Vuelta al Pais Vasco, his preparation has been severely hampered.

He will also miss tomorrow's important preparation classic, the Brabantse Pijl, and as a consequence, his Lotto-Belisol team will only line up 7 riders. With their usual captain absent, opportunities open up for some of the team's usual domestiques.

One of those is Jelle's younger brother Dennis. In his second year as a professional, he seems to have taken a step up, and he just had his best ever result with a 5th place in the second stage of the Vuelta al Pais Vasco. Unlike his brother, his main strength is not his climbing ability but rather his fast finish. However, he handles shorter ascents rather well and could be in the mix in tomorrow's race.

The team's most obvious option should be young Tim Wellens. After taking a top 10 in the WorldTour race Tour of Beijing as a stagiare late last year, the first-year professional has had slow start to his debut season. However, he is a formidable climber and has a fast final kick and as he targets a support role for Vanendert in the Ardennes classics, his form should be on the rise.

Sports director Bart Leysen knows that the team does not have a favourite in its ranks but nonetheless he hopes to see the team play a major role in the race.

“Due to the absence of Jelle we are now playing the cards of Dennis Vanendert and Tim Wellens. They rode well in Basque Country, especially the first stages (Wellens did not race in the Basque Country, ed.). This duo should play a role in the final tomorrow."

The race's main challenge is the final finishing circuit which has to be tackled three times. With 5 climbs, it is a hard affair and Leysen hopes that his team will be able to surprise on a route which is difficult to control.

"We have to make sure that one of our guys is in the breakaway before the local laps. The local course is tough, you have to be in front there, because you can’t control the race. I’ll immediately sign for a place in the top five. I think that many of our opponents are already thinking about the Amstel gold Race – like Peter Sagan – that might be an advantage for us.”

The team is completed by Dirk Bellemakers, Gaetan Bille, Kenny Dehaes, Jurgen Van De Walle and Olivier Kaisen.

Starting tomorrow at 15.00, you can follow the race on CyclingQuotes.com/live. Until then, you can prepare by reading our preview here.