"A touch of genius... When he’s under pressure, he rises above himself" - Mathieu van der Poel showered with praise following history-making Paris-Roubaix hat-trick
CyclingWednesday, 16 April 2025 at 12:00
Few riders have ever been as consistently strong at Paris-Roubaix as Mathieu van der Poel has over recent years. Last Sunday, the Dutch superstar made it an incredible, three successive victories at the 'Hell of the North', pushing back a strong fight from Tadej Pogacar to take the solo win in the velodrome.
Whilst some have pointed out Pogacar's late crash as the decisive moment of the race, Belgian cycling expert Michel Wuyts saw signs much earlier that victory would once again be heading to the king of the cobbles Van der Poel. “It was the perfect marriage of instinct and intellect. What he did at the end of the Forest of Arenberg… launching those repeated attacks there — to me, that was a touch of genius," Wuyts reflects on the latest episode of his Wuyts & Vlaeminck podcast. "Simply brilliant.”
“He prevented the race from regrouping, which meant no other group could sneak away. That’s exactly what he wanted — to keep control," Wuyts continues, explaining his point in more detail. "So he went on the offensive and broke away, taking only those he was willing to have by his side.”
This combination of almost unmatched ability and a real racing nous is nothing new for Van der Poel either. Wuyts has seen similar displays of his prowess many times over the years. “It’s his signature move: when he’s under pressure, he rises above himself. It happens every time," assesses the experienced Belgian. "Just look at last year’s E3 Saxo Classic — Wout van Aert got within ten seconds, but Van der Poel simply refused to crack. That ten seconds turned into a minute and a half.”
“This year’s E3 Saxo Classic against Mads Pedersen was the same story. Fifteen seconds, then twenty, then dropping back a little — fighting it out for twenty kilometres, and then the decisive break. Van der Poel never breaks. It’s happened seventy or eighty times in cyclocross against Van Aert. Van der Poel attacks, Van Aert pushes to close the gap, but he just can’t,” Wuyts concludes. “Let him trust his instincts — don’t burden him too much with things like Gravaa. He is Van der Poel: born for this craft, and someone willing to go through that double black wall of suffering. Make no mistake — he suffered in Paris-Roubaix.”
🚴🇫🇷 | Ze lijken wel goud, zilver en brons! Dit zijn de drie kasseien die staan te pronken thuis bij Mathieu van der Poel! 🪨🪨🪨
— Eurosport Nederland (@Eurosport_NL) April 16, 2025
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- He actually said it with gloves onMistermaumau22-05-2025
- I hope so. Or was it just to show that he is still worth another good contract?Cyclingsbestfan22-05-2025
- Given the amount of money this guy earns, thinks it's collectively beneficial with respects...
leedorney22-05-2025 - what a pity... he could have easily won the stage. He stopped his attack.
maria2024202422-05-2025 - Poor decision to let Primoz come back. Should have tried to put time into him.
Front24222-05-2025 - You're so wrong ! Froome needs to go away!frieders322-05-2025
- Shows a lot of class for such a young guyCrashjames22-05-2025
- Think how strong the team could be without Froome consuming all that money with nil to show for it. Sad. Selfish on his part tbhCrashjames22-05-2025
- Tom Dumoulin said out loud what many people were already thinking.
santiagobenites21-05-2025 - He’s also taking the place and money of many more deserving (and just as useful) riders (who’d significantly reduce costs). Only thing CF does for IPT is help them stay relevant for discussion because there’s no such thing as bad publicity if you don’t have a reputation to consider.Mistermaumau21-05-2025
yeah, van der poel’s ability to suffer is, i think, almost unparalleled. years ago, after an absolutely savage cx in namur when wout just couldn’t stay with mvdp in the last half of the last lap, van aert said, “it has always been a great quality of mathieu’s that he can ride far beyond his limit. i’m capable of riding a very good finale as well, but often he can just go a little deeper.” you see it in that classic Amstel Gold from 2019, and in every case where van der poel crosses the line and utterly collapses. people who don’t like him have always said that’s for “dramatic effect”, but it’s so obviously something that only happens after his most extreme efforts, such as his epic bonk in tirreno adriatico when he barely held off a charging pogacar on a freezing cold day. mathieu is 30, so just a few years down the road he won’t have that ability any longer. i’m glad i’ve gotten to watch so much of him while he does.
Amen