The beauty of Rund um den Finanzplatz Eschborn-Frankfurt, one of Germany’s most important one-day events, is that it can go either way, to the sprinters or to the attackers, which have enough ground to make the difference before the flat finish in the center of the city. The race is not very long – 206.8 km – but the presence of the Taunus Mountains and their challenging climbs could see the race unfold at a frantic place and attacks coming from all over the place.

The first race of what’s going to be a busy month of May for Etixx – Quick-Step will see the team field a solid squad. Tony Martin – one of the leading German riders of the moment, with more than 50 pro victories to his name – will be at the start, where he’ll be joined by neo-pro Rodrigo Contreras, David De La Cruz, Yves Lampaert, Gianni Meersman, Maximiliano Richeze, Dutch champion Niki Terpstra and Matteo Trentin, thus giving Etixx – Quick-Step more than one option on Sunday.

For 25-year-old Yves Lampaert, this will be the first race since helping Etixx – Quick-Step win the team classification at Tirreno-Adriatico, in March. Unfortunately, shortly afterwards, he suffered an injury at the right Achilles tendon and was forced to miss the cobbled classics campaign, but now returns fit and motivated to bring his contribution to the team’s success.