"A kind of disbelief spreads through the peloton" - Mathieu van der Poel's rivals shocked with Luxembourg solo masterclass

Cycling
Monday, 21 September 2026 at 22:00
Mathieu van der Poel on stage 9 of the 2026 Tour de France
Van der Poel once again left the peloton without answers at the Tour de Luxembourg with one of the season’s most spectacular performances. The Dutchman turned the final stage of the Tour de Luxembourg into a display of power and endurance that surprised even those who shared the road with him.
The Alpecin-Premier Tech rider attacked in the opening kilometres and ended up completing a remarkable 175 kilometres alone. While his rivals tried to organise the chase and rode at a high tempo, the gap barely shrank and the prospect of reeling in the Dutchman grew ever more remote.
Pepijn Reinderink, one of the riders who witnessed the show from inside the bunch, admitted he briefly considered following his compatriot’s wheel in the early phases. He soon realised, however, that the pace set by Van der Poel was beyond everyone else’s reach.
“On the first day I also tried to follow him, but I had to pay for it quickly. Today he was really on another planet. He blasted off like a rocket at the start. Nobody could follow him,” explained the Soudal Quick-Step rider in comments to NPO Radio 1.
Mathieu van der Poel at the Tour de France 2026
Mathieu van der Poel won the final stage of the Tour de Luxembourg with a solo attack of 175 kilometers 

The peloton bows to Van der Poel’s masterclass

The gap began to grow as several teams tried to organise the chase. The peloton rode with between 15 and 20 riders rotating to reel in the Dutchman, but the distance barely came down. “We were really fast, but we were told the gap wasn’t decreasing. Then a kind of disbelief spreads through the peloton,” recounted Reinderink.
The situation was especially striking because Van der Poel tackled no fewer than 175 kilometres alone, turning his win into the longest successful solo break in a professional race so far this century. His performance also arrived just days before the World Championships in Montreal, where the Dutchman will be one of the headline contenders.
Oliver Naesen was also part of the group that tried to keep things under control and explained that, at first, the peloton’s strategy seemed sound. “We thought: strategically this suits us. He’s going to turn the stage into a hard training ride. Almost 180 kilometres solo? We didn’t think that would happen. The most dangerous man is wearing himself out. He will blow up. It was perfect,” recalled the Belgian.

Serious watts ahead of World Championships

However, as the kilometers ticked by, that perception changed completely. Van der Poel not only held on, he maintained a pace that left his pursuers out of options. “It was really fast. The watts were close to a semi-classic. I can assure you it wasn’t a quiet day,” said Naesen.
The Decathlon rider also highlighted an added factor: the presence of TV and photo motorbikes around the chase group, which helped keep the speed very high. “There were about 20 men behind him. That’s why I constantly felt that a single man, with all that behind, couldn’t possibly make it to the line,” he added.
Van der Poel proved exactly the opposite. That attack became a showcase of endurance and power that left the peloton staring in disbelief and confirmed, a few days before Worlds, that he arrives in Montreal ready to be one of the race’s defining names.
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