Another year, another Tour of Oman title for Alexey Lutsenko (Astana), though this time he was utterly dominant, winning three of the six stages along the way. Lutsenko didn`t win much else in 2018 but there`s a sense that the 26-year-old might be on the verge of building a big palmarès, with stage races and Classics both on his agenda. Every rider in Oman was happy to admit Lutsenko was head and shoulders above the rest, as he helped himself to victories on the two punchy stages and then on Green Mountain to seal the title. Cofidis directeur sportif Roberto Damiani likened him to 1986 world champion Moreno Argentin. `I`m not surprised,` Lutsenko told Cyclingnews of his dominance. `I did a lot of work in Tenerife at altitude before this. Now I`m more skinny. I`m two kilograms lighter.ADVERTISEMENT `That gives me more motivation for the important races like the Classics. It`s a good start for my new season, the best I`ve had. Tomorrow I go back home to enjoy a few days with my family before going to Belgium. That`s my plan for this week. After, I go to the Classics with good legs and good motivation. Lutsenko will line up at Omloop Het Nieuwsblad next Saturday, where the form he has shown automatically makes him one of the favourites, having already shown his potential on the cobbles with a podium at the 2017 Dwars door Vlaanderen. Yet, despite Astana coaches insisting he could win the bigger cobbled Classics like the Tour of Flanders, Lutsenko is skipping them in order to focus on the hillier Ardennes races this year.
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