Filippo Ganna took his first one-day victory of his career, after a powerful and determined performance at Dwars door Vlaanderen to cap off a huge front-foot team effort.
Ganna caught an earlier solo breakaway from Wout Van Aert (Visma - Lease A Bike) to take the win in stunning fashion, with a chasing peloton just moments behind.
An early breakaway group of 18 riders forced a response from the Grenadiers, with Kim Heiduk, Josh Tarling and Sam Watson driving the chase and committing fully to bring the race back together inside the final 80km.
As the race intensified, further splits formed. Watson and Magnus Sheffield briefly featured in a group of 12, with Watson especially active, launching multiple moves to keep the pressure on. With 55km to go, Ganna made his first acceleration, testing the legs of his rivals, though the move proved short-lived.
The race properly ignited on the Eikenberg as Wout van Aert launched a decisive attack, going clear at the front. Shortly after, Ganna was momentarily set back by a mechanical issue, but he responded calmly and efficiently to rejoin the peloton without losing touch.
Up the road, Sheffield remained active in a chasing group alongside Tim van Dijke (Red Bull–Bora–Hansgrohe) and Florian Vermeersch (UAE Team Emirates - XRG), helping to keep the gap in check. As the race entered its decisive phase, the groups began to merge, and with 15km remaining, Ganna powered his way back to the front just as the race came back together.
Sensing his moment, Ganna attacked again with 6km to go, committing fully in a series of all-out efforts toward the finish. Heading into the final 2km, he launched alongside Vermeersch before pressing on solo under the flamme rouge.
In a dramatic finale, Ganna caught Van Aert inside the final 100 metres, with the chasing peloton just seconds behind, to take the victory.
FILIPPO GANNA BREAKS BELGIAN HEARTS 😮
— Cycling on TNT Sports (@cyclingontnt) April 1, 2026
The Italian catches Wout van Aert in the final 200 metres to claim Dwars door Vlaanderen 👏 pic.twitter.com/FbWStWswLW
Speaking after the race, Ganna said:
“Today the team did an amazing job for me and gave me a massive support. In the end, I tried to give back all the support they gave me with an amazing victory. For sure, Wout gave an impressive performance and to catch him was not easy but my legs supported me to the finish line and it’s an amazing victory for me.
“It was a massive effort [to catch Wout].The last corner was when I started believing. The group behind was chasing really fast and I thought they’d catch me. I’m really happy and I hope it’s good morale for the team for the next races.
“I was a bit unlucky in the first part. I hope all the bad luck was just today at the start. I was feeling good and I tried to help my teammates. This is one of the most important of my wins this season, especially here in the ‘universe of cycling’. It’s really, really nice for me.”