Steve Starr
- Wout Van Aert (+300) and Matthieu Van Der Poel (+350) are the favorites to win the Tour of Flanders
- Tadej Pogacar (+700) will become the first reigning Tour de France champion to race the Ronde since 1975
- The 272.5-km race from Antwerp to Oudenaarde, Belgium will take place on Sunday, April 3, 2022
The pro cycling season got off to an epic start as underdog Matej Mohoric made a daredevil descent of the Poggio to spoil our betting predictions for the 2022 Milan-San Remo. And with a mix of rain and snow forecast for Belgium this Sunday, the Tour of Flanders should be every bit as memorable.
Heading into the 106th edition of the race, we’ll look at the latest odds from popular online sportsbooks and make our picks on who will win the penultimate cobbled Classics of the season.
Tour of Flanders 2022
 |
|
| Wout Van Aert | +300 |
| Matthieu Van Der Poel | +350 |
| Kasper Asgreen | +700 |
| Tadej Pogacar | +700 |
| Christophe Laporte | +800 |
| Stefan Kung | +2200 |
| Tiesj Benoot | +2200 |
| Mads Pedersen | +2500 |
| Matej Mohoric | +2500 |
| Jasper Stuyven | +3300 |
| Tom Pidock | +3300 |
| Anthony Turgis | +4000 |
| Florian Senechal | +4000 |
Wout Van Aert favored
Wout Van Aert (+300) is the favorite to conquer the Tour of Flanders’ steep bergs and cobblestones. The Belgian champion has already won Omloop Het Nieuwsblad and the E3 Saxo Bank Classic this season. He also finished runner-up at Ronde van Vlaanderen in 2020 before a disappointing sixth-place last year.
The 27-year-old skipped Dwars door Vlaanderen this week so he should be fresh – and the strength of his Jumbo-Visma team could provide a huge advantage considering that Christophe Laporte (+800) has been a frontrunner in one-day races all year.
🇧🇪 #E3SaxoBankClassic @WoutvanAert does it!🥳
With @LAPORTEChristop taking a brilliant second place!🤗
What an amazing team performance👏 pic.twitter.com/eSB3y1vl7f— Team Jumbo-Visma cycling (@JumboVismaRoad) March 25, 2022
van der Poel is also in pole position
Mathieu van der Poel (+350) has claimed victory at the Tour of Flanders three times before, including a close win over his rival Van Aert in 2020. The Dutchman has only competed six days this year due to a back injury, but a first-place finish at Settimana Internazionale Coppi e Bartali last week and a third-place finish in Milan-San Remo proves that he’s in fine form.
van der Poel was out-lasted in a two-up sprint in Oudenaarde by last year’s champion Kasper Asgreen (+700). The Dane will be confident in his finishing sprint if he’s in the final selection at the Ronde.
Can Pogacar do the impossible?
Most expected Tadej Pogačar (+700) to skip this Sunday’s event given that no reigning Tour de France champion has even attempted the Tour of Flanders since 1975. This is because most riders aren’t crazy enough to give the Koppenberg a whirl just months before the world’s biggest bike race in July.
However, the 23-year-old Slovenian wants to put himself to the test. And, after an impressive fifth place at Milan-San Remo, he just might win his professional debut in the cobbled Spring Classics. The UAE Team Emirates leader dominated both Strade Bianche and Tirreno-Adriatico and has some experience riding the Ronde in juniors.
Tadej Pogacar: "I’m under no illusions about the cobbles" #cycling https://t.co/Y96khyAPSe pic.twitter.com/vyrH4CmrlP
— CyclingUpToDate (@CyclingUpToDat3) March 29, 2022
Best Bet
With snow and rain in the forecast for this Sunday, this could be anyone’s race. Rather than wager on the favorite Van Aert riding to victory in his home country, we predict van der Poel (+350) will cruise to his fourth career win at the Tour of Flanders.
See below the top sportsbooks with great signup bonuses where you can wager online and choose the best one for you:
