2021 Road World Championships predictions and cycling betting tips
Danish duo could ruin Belgium's dream of homegrown winner
Free cycling tips, best bets and analysis for the men's and women's 2021 UCI Road World Championships.
Where to watch
Women's race
Eurosport 1, 11am Saturday
Men's race
Eurosport 1 & BBC Two, 9am Sunday
Best bets
Annemeik van Vleuten to win women's road race
3pts each-way 5-1 bet365
Kasper Asgreen to win men's road race
1pt each-way 18-1 bet365
Magnus Cort to win men's road race
1pt each-way 22-1 bet365
Preview
The cycling-crazy region of Flanders is a fitting setting for the 100th anniversary of the UCI road world championships.
Belgium, and Flanders in particular, have provided cycling with some of its greatest stars down the years but Belgian fans are yet to see one of their own pull on the rainbow bands at this year's championships.
Wout van Aert and Remco Evenepoel came close in the men's time trial on Tuesday, finishing second and third, and recent Tour of Britain winner Van Aert undoubtedly has the best chance of becoming Belgium's 27th men's world champion.
If there was ever a route designed for Van Aert it would be the Classics-inspired test that awaits the peloton on Sunday. The near-270km route from Antwerp to Leuven features 42 climbs, none of which are long but all of which require lung-busting efforts to navigate.
It's the sort of terrain on which Van Aert thrives and he is clearly in sparkling form and undoubtedly the man to beat but there are enough threats in a deep field to take a chance on some riders at bigger prices.
Van Aert's long-standing rival Mathieu van der Poel would likely be closer in the betting had he not crashed out of the men's mountain bike race at the Olympics which threatened his participation due to a lingering back complaint, while reigning world champion Julian Alaphilippe can never be discounted albeit Van Aert continually appeared to have his measure at the Tour of Britain.
Denmark have a strong hand with this year's Tour of Flanders winner Kasper Asgreen and Magnus Cort, who won three stages at the Vuelta a Espana last month.
Asgreen hasn't shown a huge amount since beating Van der Poel to the line at De Ronde in the spring but his summer's are usually spent in the service of others at Grand Tours and a good fourth in Tuesday's time trial was an encouraging sign for his backers.
The credentials of Cort, meanwhile, are perfectly evident on his showing at the Vuelta when taking a trio of stages on both punchy and sprint finishes. He has never been in the shake-up in the elite Monuments but did finish on the podium of the U23 Tour of Flanders as a junior.
Van Aert's status of favourite means it will fall on Belgium's team to control the race which could give the Danes some freedom to launch some attacking manoeuvres.
The elite women's race takes place on Saturday with the Dutch having a typical wealth of options.
Dutch women occupy five of the first six spots in the betting and it would be no surprise if any of that quintet were the new holders of the rainbow bands come Saturday evening.
However, the Tokyo Olympics road race will be in fresh in the Netherlands' riders minds when they paid for a negative race and ended up with only a silver medal for Annemiek van Vleuten despite having by far the strongest squad.
Van Vleuten is the favourite and is in flying form right now, winning the Olympic time trial, women's Klasikoa San Sebastian and general classification at the Tour of Norway and Ceratizit Challenge by La Vuelta.
The 38-year-old, who was crowned world champion on another hilly course in Yorkshire in 2019, won the women's Tour of Flanders in the Spring and is a worthy favourite to take world championship glory on the same roads on Saturday.
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