Ardèche and Drôme: A Weekend for Puncheurs
This weekend, Belgium hosts the "Opening Weekend" and the first cobbled races of the year, drawing all the attention. However, the Belgian races are not the only competitions taking place, as the Faun - Ardèche Classic and the Faun - Drôme Classic, two twin races classified as 1.Pro, will also be held in these neighboring French departments.
Routes
Both the Faun - Ardèche Classic and the Faun - Drôme Classic feature medium-mountain routes with short and steep climbs, making them ideal races for puncheurs. However, Saturday’s Faun - Ardèche Classic accumulates 3,187 meters of elevation gain, almost a thousand more than the Faun - Drôme Classic on Sunday (2,309 m), making it slightly more favorable for climbers.
Favorites
Both races share most of their participants, including notable names such as Marc Hirschi (800), Juan Ayuso (1000), Mattias Skjelmose (1000), Enric Mas (1000), Brandon McNulty (1000), Richard Carapaz (800), Romain Grégoire (600), Corbin Strong (600), Ben Healy (600), Michael Woods (600), Pavel Sivakov (600), Isaac Del Toro (400), Javier Romo (200), Warren Barguil (200), and Jan Christen (200).
Photo: © Boucles Drôme Ardèche