Van der Poel at a stratospheric level wins CX World Cup in Antwerp

Van der Poel takes the victory in the Antwerp CX World Cup. An incident at the start frustrated the beginning of a race that entered a new dimension when the Dutchman took the lead. The Orange Beast exhibited a great level and the rainbow shone like never before. On the other hand, Van Aert was second and Pidcock finished eighth.

Van der Poel wins the Antwerp CX World Cup in style

The reunion of the kings of cyclocross resulted in a bitter start for two of them: Van der Poel's foot slipped off the pedal in the first few meters and Pidcock fell to the ground after taking the second turn. The incident plunged the riders into the depths of the grid and they had no choice but to make a comeback.

The other side of the coin was for Van Aert, who did have a calm start and immediately took the top positions. Iserbyt took the lead and Nieuwenhuis took the baton from him still in the first lap.

The race had many open fronts and the news kept coming without hardly any time to digest them. Van der Poel easily overtook several rivals and placed twentieth, while Pidcock also worked stylishly and climbed to the fourteenth position.

Van Aert suffered a mishap when he fell in the sand, although he hardly lost any time. Sweeck -a recognized specialist in this surface- also had more difficulties than desired. Van der Poel continued to climb positions and put a Pidcock in his bag who also made a comeback but was unable to emulate the devastating pace of the Dutchman.

The head remained united in a compact group. Van Aert adopted a secondary role sheltered by other riders who pedaled ahead. Vanthourenhout took the lead shortly before Van Aert felt the breath of Van der Poel on his neck.

The rainbow was behind his main rival until they reached the planks, Van Aert slipped and quickly recovered but already behind Van der Poel. On the other hand, Pidcock's comeback stalled and the Briton already had to row a lot to get into the top ten.

Van der Poel climbed the highest peaks of the grid with the same ease with which he overcame the lowest slopes. The Dutchman took second place and when Vanthourenhout made a mistake, he launched an attack. The Orange Beast galloped with a runaway attack that was impossible to replicate.

Van der Poel only needed a clear track to show the true superiority he was hiding. The Dutchman combined the physical strength of a brutal pedal stroke with the technical exhibition of unparalleled riding. The multitude of fans cheering from the fences witnessed a master class in cyclocross.

Van der Poel's fantastic performance contrasted with the discreet performance of Van Aert who, while still embedded in the Iserbyt-Nieuwenhuis-Sweeck and company group, was far from the level of the rainbow jersey.

The chasing group dwindled until Van Aert and Iserbyt remained as the only survivors. Both cyclists kept the pulse, despite some bursts that made Van Aert look like he had an extra over his combative compatriot.

The race progressed and Van der Poel put a brake on the monumental performance. The Dutchman understood that it was time to slow down slightly and manage the income he had forged in previous laps.

The balance for the second place increasingly leaned towards Van Aert. The Belgian overcame an Iserbyt who had already lost contact with the Herentals rider at the beginning of the last lap.

Without any capricious backlash, logic prevailed in the final script of the race and Van der Poel completed the last lap to sign the victory in the Antwerp CX World Cup.

Van Aert showed a great performance in the final part of the race. The performance was good overall, although - as in the Exact Cross of Mol - he was one point behind Van der Poel. For his part, the fall at the start of the race forced Pidcock to recover positions. The comeback slowed as he moved up the field and he finally had to settle for eighth place.

Iserbyt took third place on the podium.

Results Elite Men's - CX World Cup Antwerp

1. Mathieu Van der Poel 1h00'20"
2. Wout Van Aert +29"
3. Eli Iserbyt +37’’
4. Laurens Sweeck +43"
5. Joris Nieuwenhuis +46"
6. Lars van der Haar +1'
7. Niels Vandeputte +1'07"
8. Tom Pidcock +1'14"
9. Thibau Nys +1'22"
10. Toon Vandebosch +1'26"