Adrie van der Poel does not see Mathieu Van Der Poel winning the World Championships - "Whether he is ready to compete against riders who have been good for a whole year, then I say no"

Adrie van der Poel gave some deep insights ahead of World Championships race on Sunday. He also expressed his concerns regarding Mathieu Van der Poel’s form, but his main conclusion is "a lot will also depend on the course at the World Cup.”

Van der Poel senior revealed he does not see his son winning the World Championship. "If Mathieu is OK, he does stand a chance. The difference with his form at the Tour was already huge. But whether he is ready to compete against riders who have been good for a whole year, then I say no.”

But he also know that his son won’t waste the opportunity if he was not confident. "His preparation is better than last year, though, when he finished eighth at the World Championships in Leuven. He said so himself. Knowing Mathieu, he would never have gone to Australia if he didn't see opportunities."

He also advised his son to not provoke Remco Evenepoel and play smart till the end. "I would let him ride, you have to dare to gamble. There are also other countries. You are not going to pull the chestnuts out of the fire for another country, unless you are 100% sure you can beat the others," concluded Adrie van der Poel .