The Strade Bianche has slipped away for another year. We're sad that there's still another year until the next edition, but since it's at the start of the Classics season, the hype surrounding the Monuments outweighs the sadness at leaving such a beautiful race behind.

Because the Strade Bianche is nothing if not beautiful. Not only because of how entertaining its roads are, but because it's one of those roads where we wouldn't mind having moments of pause while we were shown helicopter shots of the beautiful Tuscan countryside and its white roads.

But what can we do? The Strade Bianche is a race where we have little time to enjoy the scenery on TV, and there are always cyclists trying to steal the show from such a beautiful scene.

And that's despite the fact that the race wasn't the best in recent years. Some people even thought it was a bad race. But nothing could be further from the truth. It was a great race. The race was broken from many kilometers to the finish. You only have to compare how far the other classics break, and how many minutes (or hours) of entertainment they give us. Not to mention quality. As I wrote in the last article, the Strade Bianche always leaves us with strange alliances. If last year we saw the Bardet-Van Aert alliance, this year we saw Fuglsang-Van Aert-Alaphilippe. A race-goer, someone who comes from cyclocross, and an Ardenero. You won't see him again this year.

Alaphilippe's sense of superiority was such that I never doubted his victory at any moment since he linked up with the attack of Fuglsang and Van Aert.

The bad thing is that we're so used to seeing so many favorites take the lead in this race that we may have become spoiled. Once the winning split formed, there was no doubt which group would win. We expected more from riders like Van Avermaet or the Lotto Soudals (Benoot and Wellens), knowing that the latter, especially, are riders who tend to race with advance moves.

By the way, keep an eye on Maximilian Schachman this season. His man-on-a-mission chase left me speechless.

The downside? The absences. Perhaps they were too noticeable. Especially riders who have provided so much spectacle in this race, such as Sagan, Valverde, and Kwiatkowski in particular. Others like Van der Poel (I can't wait to see him in the Classics) and Primoz Roglic also come to mind. And the other riders who, because they're competing in Paris-Nice, can't be at Strade Bianche. A change of dates would be a godsend for this race. It's more than deserved. This race is starting to become a priority for many important cyclists.

And after this brief review/opinion, I move on to ask myself some questions that came to mind after the race:

• The sixth monument?

I don't want to say that the Strade Bianche deserves to be a Monument, but what I do think is that if, 50 years from now, another Monument were to be added to the list, it would be the Strade Bianche without a doubt. If there's one thing about Monuments, it's that each one is totally different from the next. No two races are the same, and each one is suited to a different type of rider. That's why so few riders have managed to win all five. Following this logic, if there's a Classic on the calendar that offers something different from the rest of the races, it's Strade Bianche. It's a bit short on years, it's short on kilometers, but it's accumulating more prestige every year. In reality, the Monuments thing is nothing more than someone's invention many years ago, as they don't award more points than the other top-category Classics, but the prestige is there. This young race has easily surpassed races with more than a century of history, such as the Milan-Turin or the Giro d'Emilia, in terms of interest from fans, riders, and manufacturers.

• Van Aert's growth or decline?

Wout van Aert was undoubtedly one of the big names on Saturday. He has a special feeling for this race and proved it again. I think he's the most stubborn rider I've ever seen. If the poor guy is used to anything this year, it's chasing. Van der Poel in particular. In this case, it was Fuglsang and Alaphilippe, riders who are much better suited to the characteristics of Strade Bianche. The point is that van Aert is having a crucial year for his road career. He must improve on last year's performance. He's in a World Tour squad and at an age where he can improve. After a disastrous year in the mud, he must take a step forward on the road. And for me, he's showing signs of it. From strength to strength, after a discreet Omloop, he was one of the three strongest in Tuscany, and he was the best of all the classic riders who will be his rivals on the rocks (van Avermaet or Benoot, for example). His tremendous chasing performance is frightening. He's a spectacular all-rounder and is heavier and stronger than ever. My number one favorite for Paris-Roubaix. I'm confident.

• Alaphilippe: the heir?

Yes, I'm referring to the heir to Alejandro Valverde . And no, I know there won't be another like Valverde, and if there were another like him in the future, it wouldn't be Alaphilippe. I'm referring to the heir to the hills, the Ardennes, the uphill finishes. It's difficult to say this after the Frenchman's knockout at the World Championships that Alejandro won, but last year we already saw signs of a possible overtaking . Beating Valverde at Huy in a one-on-one in top form is the ideal situation to pass the baton. I compare it to when Sagan beat Cancellara in Flanders. The difference is that Valverde isn't retired like Fabian. I hope Alejandro gives me a reality check and, at 39 years old and wearing a rainbow jersey, he'll once again be the bogeyman in the Ardennes.

An article by Fran Alarcón for Baggicase.