A PUNCTURE may have brought an end to his own chances of featuring heavily at the Prudential RideLondon-Surrey Classic but Luke Rowe was quick to look at the bigger picture.

Rowe came into the annual 200km Classic in London full of confidence having finished sixth in a gruelling Commonwealth Games road race, won by fellow Welshman Geraint Thomas, in Glasgow a week ago.

That particular race had been severely affected by driving rain and it was very similar for Rowe at the Classic in the capital as the remnants of Hurricane Bertha arrived on Sunday morning.

But while the weather may have cleared after the early stages of the race, Rowe’s troubles were only just starting as he picked up a puncture on Box Hill with around 60km to go.

With the peloton splitting into two at the same stage, the 24-year-old was unable to keep himself in the frame to help his fellow Team Sky riders until the end, eventually finishing in 63rd place.

However it was not all bad news on the day as Ben Swift just lost a sprint finish behind fellow Brit Adam Blythe for Team Sky with Rowe trying to look at the positives.

“On personal note, it went pretty bad, I probably punctured at the worst moment that I could have,” he said.

“The race had split when I punctured and I had to wait for a couple of minutes and then the race was over by then and there was no coming back.

“Obviously Ben got second and that’s great news. I would have liked him to win but if there was anyone else I could have chosen to win, it would have been Adam.

“He’s a good friend of mine so I’m pretty happy with him being able to do that and I think as a team we rode well, it was pretty easy riding and wasn’t too bad.

“I was feeling good and it would have been nice to have been there with Swifty at the end but that’s life and that’s bike racing, isn’t it?

“I tried to stay relaxed when I got the puncture but I had a bit of a ding dong with a few commissaires but you just have to deal with it and move onto the next race.”

There is little time for Rowe to stop and catch his breath following his efforts around London and the Surrey countryside on a wet and windy Sunday afternoon.

The 24-year-old Welshman is back into action on the roads in Holland today (Monday) with the Vuelta a Espana then starting on August 23.

The Road World Championships are also scheduled for next month and Rowe was keen to get himself back in the frame to help out Team Sky and Britain again.

“The Vuelta and the worlds are a possibility,” he added. “Ben is looking good for the worlds so it would be nice to go there and try and support him but it all depends on selection.”

BLOB Prudential RideLondon took place on 9 & 10 August. To find out more, visit prudentialridelondon.co.uk