After his best Classics season to date, powerful Australian Luke Durbridge is hoping to see further improvement in the Spring’s toughest races in 2017.

"I would say it was a good classics season, as obviously I didn't get any major results but it was a really good progression to what I have been trying to work towards," Durbridge told Cyclingnews. "I moved to Belgium, tried to learn the roads, and I think that really helped with me making more of the final selection. I saw when the race really went, I got to see when guys would attack to win the race when normally you are dropped before that."

Durbridge says that his Spring lacks results with third in De Panne and 18th in Roubaix all he has to show. However, he says he was always in the finals of the big races and this encouraged him.

"I was always within that last 30 guys at the classics, so I had some good races but nothing on paper to show 'this is a good result'. For me personally, it was good to know that I can be there, and now I have to perform within this group. It is a hard one to quantify as you look back on the results and see 18th is the best, but if you are consistently at the pointy end of those races, then it is a good race. 2016 was a good progression classics season."

Another goal for 2017 is to refocus on time trialling, which he arrived in the sport as, being the 2011 U23 World champ. He racked up two National titles, two wins in France and even beat Bradley Wiggins to win in the 2012 Dauphine prologue.

"I am a time triallist and I love time trialling. I love the aerodynamics, the effort, how you push yourself. It's just you out there on the road against the clock. I am going to continually try to improve that throughout the season and every opportunity I have. Unless I have ridden the front for five days straight, which happens, I will always give a time trial a good crack. I am hoping next year I get another opportunity, get a few good opportunities throughout the year, to prove myself that I can be up there with some of the best in the time trial, for sure."