Van Aert vs. van der Poel: Is the Dutchman beatable?

The ‘cross worlds received a last-minute surprise entrant, which could make things interesting.

Mathieu van der Poel has been untouchable this season, winning all seven races he’s entered. And speaking of seven, that’s the record he’s trying to tie when he races the 2025 UCI Cyclocross World Championships in Liévin, France, on Sunday.

Game on for an incredible battle

Barring incident, it seemed a fait accompli that he’d do it. In each of his wins, no rider has even come close to his level. Thibau Nys and Joris Nieuwenhuis tried, but it was never a contest.
One rider, however, has always been at his level—Wout van Aert. He and van der Poel have had one of the longest rivalries in cycling, dating back to their junior days in 2012. Van Aert himself is a three-time world champion, and the last time he raced ‘cross worlds in 2023, it was one for the ages. He and van der Poel were a level above the rest, coming to the line together. Van der Poel took the win in a sprint on the final stretch of pavement.

Van Aert is feelin good

Now, van Aert has officially confirmed he’ll be racing at the cyclocross world championships this Sunday in Liévin. After discussing it with his coaches and team, the Belgian star decided to jump into the action, bringing some much-needed firepower to the race.

“I’m feeling good, and my winter’s been solid,” van Aert said. “The world championships weren’t really on my radar until recently. But after Maasmechelen, the Belgian team coach, my coach at Team Visma – Lease a Bike, and I all agreed it made sense. I’m excited to race in such a beautiful event. It’s a great way to give myself an extra boost heading into the bigger road goals later this year. Sure, the preparation’s been different, but I’ll give it everything I’ve got.”

A short season but good legs

Although the Visma – Lease a Bike racer has only competed in five cyclocross races this season, he quickly found his form. He won his second race at the Superprestige Gullegem, followed by a dominant victory at the UCI CX World Cup in Dendermonde. Granted, van der Poel wasn’t racing—he had injured himself at Baal and took a month off, though he still trained on the road.

This could be a(nother) very special ‘cross worlds for Canada

The two were supposed to have several duels this season, but due to injury and illness, only a few materialized. However, Saturday gave us a taste of what might happen.

Van Aert’s last event—a good…