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Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Deceuninck) is back on the cyclocross bike and already back to dominant best as he easily won his first race of the 2023-24 season, the X2O Trofee round in Herentals.
The world champion hit the front of the field from the gun, pushing the pace from the start in a clear statement of intent. He’d soon be out in the lead on his own, too, leaving his rivals behind on the steep mid-lap climb to power away over the top and down the tricky descent.
He’d remain out front alone until the end of the race, extending his advantage lap after lap in a devastating display of strength. After one lap, he was 13 seconds up, after three the lead was 44 seconds, and with two laps of the eight remaining almost a minute separated Van der Poel and the rest.
By the time he crossed the line for the final time to secure an inevitable victory, Van der Poel had enjoyed the time to ease up and enjoy his win, shedding a chunk of time in the process.
28 seconds later, Tom Pidcock (Ineos Grenadiers) finished solo in second place, a second ahead of Lars van der Haar (Baloise Trek Lions) after a multi-rider battle for second that made for far more interesting viewing compared to the world champion’s peerless display.
“It actually went quite well from the start,” Van der Poel said after the race, according to WielerFlits. “I quickly found myself alone. I immediately had a nice lead. After that it was quite a long hour on my own.”
“I felt quite strong and knew that the hill was the most difficult point of the circuit. And I felt good, so I immediately got into the right rhythm. I quickly chose my own pace.”
“Was it boring to ride alone for an hour? Certainly not, I enjoyed it. There was only one moment of inattention when I hit the ground. But other than that it was nice to be back.”
“I like to do that: ride at my own pace, choose my own lines. So it was fun. I have trained for a long time to get back there and it is…
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