After winning another Omloop Het Nieuwsblad title earlier this Sprint and on the back of Geraint Thomas’ E3 Harelbeke win, Ian Stannard says Sky are close to winning their first ever Monument.

“That win is in our grasp and it’s realistic. They’re hard races and they’re solid races, you need some luck but we have a few guys capable now,” he told Cyclingnews when they sat down with him the night before E3 Harelbeke.

“I felt good in Milan-San Remo and was just a little unlucky with the slippery roads. I wanted to be there to help the team and get what I wanted out of the race. I don’t really feel like I raced but I had good sensations so I’m confident for the rest of the Classics. I managed to stay upright and, apart from a bruise from hitting the barrier, I was fine.”

Frighteningly, Stannard says he is even better now than he was a few weeks ago when he took on and beat three Etixx-QuickStep riders in the Omloop. However, we will have to wait a bit to see him lead the team, as Thomas is due to lead in Flanders before he joins forces with Stannard and Bradley Wiggins for Paris-Roubaix.

“I’m ahead of where I was then. I’ve done Tirreno and I’ve trained hard. I’m in a good place and I’m mindful that there’s a long way to go and it’s where Roubaix where I really want to perform. I’m still training through this period but I’m hoping it all comes out in the next few weeks. I just want to do my job as well as possible.”

“Roubaix is the one that suits me and my characteristics as a rider. Maybe the old Flanders course was good for me but now three times up the Paterberg and Kwaremont is a little too heavy for me,” he told Cyclingnews.