Schedule, favorites and how to watch the Brabantse Pijl: Evenepoel's return to competition

After the serious accident that Remco Evenepoel suffered during the winter while training, which has delayed his preparation, the Belgian finally returns to wearing a race number with his sights set on the horizon of the Tour de France but with the short-term goal of proving in the Ardennes classics that he has the level to face Pogacar or Vingegaard head-on when June arrives.

The Brabantse Pijl will help Evenepoel regain race rhythm before the Ardennes

It is usually a race often overlooked by the big names because it is situated in the transition between the Flemish cobblestone classics and the traditional Ardennes week with the Amstel Gold Race, Fleche Wallonne, and Liege-Bastogne-Liege triptych that the climbers choose to showcase themselves in this type of race, both those who are finalizing their preparation for the Giro d'Italia and those who close their first block of races here before retreating to their bases to prepare thoroughly for the assault on the Tour de France.

Favorites to win the 2025 Brabantse Pijl

However, in this 2025, this race features a cast of cyclists that will make this race tremendously attractive, starting, as it could not be otherwise, with Remco Evenepoel who, like his great rivals in July, will try to win in his debut to make it clear that his form is optimal.

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He will not have it easy to win. First, because it is his first race of the season, not at the beginning of the year but in a phase of this campaign where everyone is in top form. Secondly, because he will have to face a Tom Pidcock who intends to continue taking advantage of every opportunity available to repay Q36.5 for all the trust shown and effort made for his signing.

As a third contender, we must include a Wout van Aert who collected another honorable position in the Paris-Roubaix, although far from the expected performance for a rider of his caliber, especially considering the sensations he left us, cut off from the start and having to chase throughout the day. In any case, at some point his misfortune has to end, and the lower average level of a race like the Brabantse Pijl may help the Belgian regain the path to victory.

After Mathieu van der Poel finished his first block of the season, Alpecin-Deceuninck presents a guerrilla team led by their cyclocross pillars such as Tibor del Grosso and Quinten Hermans who, for sure, will give more than one headache to those who try to keep the race under control.

The same goes for UAE Team Emirates-XRG, which, despite not having Tadej Pogacar who will skip this race to recover optimally for the Amstel Gold Race on Sunday, features names like Tim Wellens, Mikkel Bjerg, or Jhonatan Narvaez who have enough quality to be among the best in a race like the Brabantse Pijl.

2025 Brabantse Pijl Route

Starting in the city of Beersel and finishing in a town with a cyclocross flavor like Overijse, both located south of Brussels, the peloton members will face a 175-kilometer route full of small walls, typical narrow roads of Belgium in an area between the Flemish plains and the Walloon region that only increases the character of a race that links both classic sub-campaigns.

However, as is usual in this race, it will be the final circuit around Overijse that will decide the race. A loop of almost 20 kilometers that they will have to complete four times and in which they face the climbs of Hertstraat, Moskesstraat, Holstheide, and S-Bocht Overijse, with the finish line of each lap being located at the top of the latter. A tough route but with a level of demand that expands the list of cyclists who can triumph here compared to other races.

How to watch the 2025 Brabantse Pijl

The Brabantse Pijl will take place on Friday, April 18, and, as expected, Eurosport and the Max platform where this channel is integrated will provide full coverage of the race.

The broadcast will start at 15:15 on Max and fifteen minutes later on Eurosport 1, stretching until around 17:30 when the conclusion of the race is scheduled.