Degenkolb ditches 1x drivetrain for E3 BinckBank Classic
Mechanic says wider range of gears needed, Pedersen still on 1x
John Degenkolb has ditched SRAM's 1x drivetrain and returned to a standard double chainring crankset for the E3 BinckBank Classic.
The Trek-Segafredo rider suffered a mechanical on the descent of the Poggio at Milan-San Remo last Saturday, and bashed his bike in frustration as the front of the race escaped him.
The problem was an apparent dropped chain, an issue that has been linked with 1x systems in the past, notably when the Aqua Blue Sport first introduced them to the professional peloton in 2018.
On Friday morning, Degenkolb lined up for E3-Harelbeke in Belgium with SRAM's RED e-Tap AXS groupset, with a standard double chainring crankset.
Trek-Segafredo denied the switch indicated Degenkolb was unhappy with the 1x drivetrain.
"He needs a wider range of gears to handle the climbs here," a mechanic told Cyclingnews. "At Milan-San Remo you don't need two chainrings, but here you have steep climbs like the Paterberg."
However, Degenkolb's teammate Mads Pedersen was still using the SRAM 1x groupset after switching to the set-up at the start of the season.
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The Dane finished on the podium of the Tour of Flanders last year and, along with Degenkolb and Stuyven, is one of Trek-Segafredo's three leaders for the cobbled Classics.
Both Degenkolb and Pedersen have custom dark red paint finishes for their Trek Madone framesets.
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Patrick is an NCTJ-trained journalist, and former deputy editor of Cyclingnews, who has seven years’ experience covering professional cycling. He has a modern languages degree from Durham University and has been able to put it to some use in what is a multi-lingual sport, with a particular focus on French and Spanish-speaking riders. Away from cycling, Patrick spends most of his time playing or watching other forms of sport - football, tennis, trail running, darts, to name a few, but he draws the line at rugby.