While Jumbo Visma swept the classics, the word on the lips of many in Belgium this week was "bicarb." Could the secret of the Dutch team's phenomenal spring success lie in a small pile of baking soda?

Probably not. Many riders and team bosses have poured cold water on the notion that a new slight gain is having a revolutionary impact on the road.

"Pure marketing," as one world tour manager told Cycling News at Wednesday's Doir Door Hlaanderen.

There have been several recent reports of the launch of the "Bicarb System" from Jumbo Bisma's nutrition partner, Swedish company Mauten, which is "an advanced sports fuel designed to help athletes push the limits of effort and power during high-intensity exercise."

Said to be.

Sodium bicarbonate, commonly used in baking and cleaning, inhibits the production of lactic acid in muscles and theoretically reduces fatigue, especially during explosive efforts; Maurten, who is also a sponsor of Intermarché-Wanty-Gobert, says this new system is designed to help stomach related side effects, claiming that it will "eradicate the possibility of side effects related to the stomach.

Primoš Roglic, the three-time Vuelta a España champion, first used the new system two years ago, but it has only recently become commercially available and has been linked to Jumbo-Visma athletes and those in other sports for the past few weeks.

Bicarb as a panacea, however, is not an easy story for all to digest.

"It has already been used by all teams in the peloton for years," said one team boss.

"A lot of companies are now trying to push it through the media. It's a very small piece of the overall performance puzzle. It's nothing special to me.

Another team boss, Patrick Lefebvre of Soudal-Quick Step, agreed, suggesting that this kind of hysteria is a natural occurrence after a period of dominance by one team.

"I think it's marketing, a kind of bluff," Lefebvre told Cycling News. 'I know how the winning team feels. Before, the blue team (Quick Step) came out in front and everyone was shaking. Now it's the opposite."

Within the peloton, bicarb doesn't seem to be much of a topic of conversation either.

"Oh no, the players aren't too worried," Matteo Trentin told Cycling News, revealing that he has never used bicarbonate of soda.

"I don't think it's new. It was used a lot in the time trials."

"It was used a lot in the time trials.

Indeed, reports of pro cyclists using bicarbonate to improve performance date back decades. Earlier this week, Tiesj Benoot of Jumbo-Visma confirmed that he has been using it since 2015, when he was riding Lotto-Dstny.

The novelty is Maarten's "bicarb system," which claims to address the common problem of stomach upset and allow riders to use more bicarb systems.

What this new bicarb science really does for performance, and whether there is more to it than mere marketing, remains to be tested. Jonas Vingegaard does not use it and won last year's Tour de France without carbon dioxide. [Jonas Vingegaard does not use and won last year's Tour de France without carbonated drinks.

"My grandmother used to cook with soda, so it's nothing special," Benoot joked at the start of the Doire de Flenderen.

As for Lefebvre, he took a sarcastic tone after another humiliation by Jumbo Visma in the Dwars Doors Fullerndelen.

"I went looking for that bakery, but I couldn't find it."