Who will be able to beat Mathieu van der Poel at the CX World Cup in Zonhoven?

The Christmas marathon of races concludes with a new race of the Cyclocross World Cup on another iconic circuit in the specialty, Zonhoven, with its characteristic De Kuil, the pit or hole in Flemish, of sand that every year becomes a sort of natural grandstand that welcomes hundreds of cyclocross fans. 

Cyclocross World Cup Schedule – Zonhoven

Sunday, January 4, 2026

• 10:00 – Junior Women
• 12:00 – Junior Men
• 13:40 – Elite Women
• 15:10 – Elite Men

Who can defeat Mathieu van der Poel in the Zonhoven CX World Cup?

Let’s remember the fact, Mathieu van der Poel has not stopped winning a cyclocross race since a lamppost crossed his path in January 2014 while he was fighting for victory in the Benidorm race. Given the superiority he has been showing this season, it does not seem that anyone can overshadow him on a circuit like Zonhoven, which he excels at, having achieved 5 victories there.

This race could have a very special meaning because if Mathieu van der Poel decides to end his career in cyclo-cross in case of winning the World Cup in Hulst we would be, in principle, before the last confrontation between him and Wout van Aert in the discipline of the mud, meaning the end of a rivalry of more than a decade and that has raised the popularity of cyclo-cross to new heights. But in the end Van Aert was a last minute withdrawal due to the injury suffered on Friday.

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Among the mortals, Thibau Nys is becoming one of the best cyclists of the current season. The Belgian champion seems to have set aside the irregularity of previous campaigns and disconnections from races when things did not go well. Much more mature, there is no doubt that he must be one of the great dominators in the coming years. For now, he has not shied away from the battle with Van Aert. Additionally, following the forced withdrawal of Laurens Sweeck, he arrives in Zonhoven as the virtual leader of the overall Cyclocross World Cup standings, with a points margin that puts the final victory within reach if he remains consistent in the remaining 4 races.

Of course, we cannot forget about the Vanthourenhouts, Wyseure, Verstrynge, Van der Haar, Aerts, and even Felipe Orts, who will try to play their cards at the start of the race to evade surveillance and surprise in the always spectacular Zonhoven race.

In the women's category, the absolute favorite will once again be Lucinda Brand, who is showing even more overwhelming superiority than Van der Poel. Puck Pieterse will again try to keep up with her, although, based on recent races, it does not seem that the World Cup leader has a rival.

Zonhoven Cyclocross World Cup Circuit

Even those who follow cyclocross the least are familiar with the image of cyclists launching down the sandy slopes of De Kuil, the most characteristic part of the Zonhoven cyclocross circuit, which every year gives us one of the most typical photos of the modality. An almost entirely natural circuit, as only one bridge alters what we can find the rest of the year on the paths of Zonhoven.

Beyond De Kuil, which involves launching down a tremendous sandy slope where one must be very precise with weight distribution and the ascent on the opposite side that requires carrying the bike on the shoulder up another steep sandy slope, the Zonhoven circuit has practically everything: a section of riding through a forest where the ability to navigate is essential to avoid losing momentum, a sand and mud up and down that in many editions forces dismounting, a fast descent to catch a bit of breath, or the flat and straight lower part of the circuit where one can unleash watts. All these ingredients in their right measure make the Zonhoven race an unmissable event every year.

How to watch the Zonhoven Cyclocross World Cup

The proximity of the Winter Olympic Games leaves us without the possibility of following the race on Eurosport on one of its standard channels, which are available on almost all television platforms. Therefore, if we want to follow the event through Eurosport, we will only have the option to do so via the HBO Max platform.

Additionally, in principle, RTVE has rights to broadcast all the Cyclocross World Cup events this season. However, in the last race held, we were left wanting as neither Teledeporte nor RTVE Play broadcast the Dendermonde event. Since the public channel has not yet published its sports programming for next Sunday, it is not possible to know until the last minute whether the public channel will broadcast the Zonhoven race or not.