A winter without Van der Poel? Cyclocross braces for a possible season without the eight-time World Champion

Mathieu van der Poel could be one of the major absences this coming winter. After winning his eighth rainbow jersey and becoming the cyclocross rider with the most world titles in history, the Dutchman still does not know if he will return to the mud during the 2026/27 season. He hinted at this after the Road World Championships in Montreal, and now his brother David has confirmed that the possibility of taking a completely free winter is very serious.

David Van der Poel sees a winter without Mathieu as possible

Van der Poel finished his road season last Sunday with a bronze medal at the World Championships in Montreal. After the race, he confirmed that he would not compete on asphalt anymore this year, and when the inevitable question about his return to cyclocross came up, he gave a much less common response.

As we already reported after the World Championships in Montreal, Van der Poel stated that he had not yet thought about his cyclocross season and reminded that he is expecting the birth of his first daughter in January.

In other statements to Sporza, he was even more explicit: "I don't know if there will be a return to cyclocross, so we'll see".

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The statement might seem like just a way to postpone any decision until after his vacation, but his brother David Van der Poel has now provided more context. In statements collected by Het Nieuwsblad, the former cyclist and current agent of riders acknowledges that future fatherhood could be an additional reason for Mathieu to decide to stop.

"Becoming a father soon is a moment when he must and also wants to take a break", explains David.

Mathieu Van der Poel and Roxanne Bertels announced last June that they are expecting their first child, a girl whose birth is scheduled for January 2027, right in the middle of the cyclocross season.

But, according to his brother, the issue goes beyond that. "It's not because he no longer enjoys competing in those races, but because of everything that surrounds it. It's much more than an hour of cyclocross. He spends an entire day on it and also has to do interviews... That requires a lot of concentration and mental energy. He would like to be left alone during a winter", explains David.

The possibility of stopping has been on the table for years

Fatherhood may ultimately tip the scales, but it would be a mistake to explain the current doubts solely for that reason. Van der Poel was already seriously considering reducing or even quitting cyclocross before publicly learning that he was going to be a father.

At the end of 2025, even before winning his eighth World Championship, Van der Poel himself acknowledged that he was thinking about his future in the discipline.

He then explained that if he achieved the eighth world title in Hulst, he would have very little left to achieve in cyclocross. He also acknowledged that, although he still enjoyed racing, everything that comes with competing in a winter season requires a lot of energy.

The Dutchman even raised the advantages of spending a winter away from competition: resting for a longer time, continuing to train in Spain, and preparing his road season with greater peace of mind. Ultimately, he decided to continue. And the result was hard to improve.

He has won practically everything that can be won

Van der Poel arrived at the World Championships in Hulst with seven titles and left with eight, definitively surpassing the historic record of Erik De Vlaeminck. Since then, he is the cyclist with the most elite men's World Championships in the history of the discipline.

In Hulst, he won that eighth rainbow after another season in which he dominated practically every race he competed in.

His superiority had even led Sven Nys to assert before the World Championships that, regardless of what happened in Hulst, for him, Van der Poel was already the best cyclocross rider to have ever competed.

The decision will come after his vacation

Nothing has been decided yet. David Van der Poel explains that Mathieu will now enter a period of rest and that he will later sit down with the team to decide what the best path is. Sponsors will also have a say in a decision that is especially relevant for cyclocross, where the presence of the Dutchman has become one of the major focal points of each winter.

His brother also does not take for granted that giving up cyclocross will necessarily improve his performance on the road.

"I don't know if it's necessarily a better preparation for spring without cyclocross. In recent seasons, one thing has never interfered with the other," he points out.

The issue, therefore, seems to go beyond performance. Van der Poel has been chaining road, cyclocross, and, at certain times, mountain biking, with very short rest periods between disciplines for years. Now, with eight CX World Championships, the idea of stopping competition for a longer period makes more sense.