"The Belgian wind isn't strong in every direction, and the race today had many more turns than just into and out of the wind. The last 50k was dangerous in the rain, but after all day in the breakaway I finished without risk."

Those were the words of Astana's Daniil Fominykh after the late-season Belgian sprinter's race Brussels Cycling Classic. A race 200km long and designed to accommodate a wide, flat and fast sprint finish at the end of a long and varied season.

Fominykh finished 4:03 behind race winner Dylan Groenewegen of the Netherlands. 30 riders finished in the first group, including Astana Pro Team riders Andrea Guardini, Laurens De Vreese, Ruslan Tleubayev and Maxat Ayazbayev within 30 seconds on a long and forgiving sprint.

Sunday's French late-summer semi-classic GP Fourmies will be more varied in sprint combinations at the finish of the village circuits and Alexey Lutsenko arrives to race in sharp form after a healthy summer and an overall late season start following a hemorrhoid operation and recovery in spring.