Joris Nieuwenhuis (Ridley) powered away from Michael Vanthourenhout (Pauwels Sauzen-Altez Industriebouw) inside of four laps to go to solo to victory at X2O Trofee Rapencross on Sunday, in Lokeren and claim his second victory of the 2025-26 cyclocross season.
Although Nieuwenhuis made a minor slip in a corner during the final laps – his only mistake of the race – the Dutch rider had ample time to recover and still crossed the line 48 seconds ahead of his nearest rival. Second-place finisher Vanthourenhout has placed on the podium in all six cyclocross races he has completed this season.
“Actually, I also felt quite in control before that [pulling away], but I just couldn’t pass the riders, and I just had to be patient. And then when I finally got in the front, then I could do my own pace and do a stable, high pace. And then I rode away,” Nieuwenhuis said.
Nys, who was leading the X2O Trofee – where time and not points are counted – after his win on Saturday, stopped for a few seconds, looking at the clock, before crossing the finish line. Nieuwenhuis now leads the eight-event series ahead of Flandriencross on November 16, 2025.
Winning the race was even sweeter for the 29-year-old as he admits that his “goal is to win a classification.”
“And to be honest, yesterday, I was already doubting, of course, because I lost like three minutes,” Nieuwenhuis added before he knew that he was leading the series. “So I was like, okay, the classification is almost over, but today, I don’t know what it is at the moment, but I think I’m a bit more back than I thought I would be.”
Vandeputte was the first to take the front, putting Saturday’s issue with a pedal slip at the start of the race, which cost him valuable positions. The field lined up behind him as they tackled the technical course, with deep runs in the…
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