“He has built such a big engine… who is going to beat Mathieu van der Poel?” – Dutch ex-pro expects winter dominance to carry into Spring Classics

The most striking takeaway from Mathieu van der Poel’s cyclocross winter is not simply the results, but the trajectory. What began as a campaign won on control and experience has evolved into something far more decisive.

According to a Dutch former professional, the version now on display is not only primed for another world title in the mud, but already looks ready to impose himself on the road within weeks.

Speaking on the Live Slow Ride Fast, Laurens ten Dam described a clear shift in how Van der Poel has dominated as the winter progressed. Early victories came through know-how and race sense. Now, the margins have grown.

“We saw him in Namur. He won there as well, but purely on routine and knowing how to finish a race. Now he can do whatever he wants,” Ten Dam said. Even when misfortune strikes, the outcome no longer changes. Van der Poel is winning races despite punctures and disruption, a theme repeated in recent World Cup rounds.

That evolution has been most obvious in how races are decided. Ten Dam pointed to the way Van der Poel now creates gaps that simply cannot be closed. “When you see him going through those corners, he goes through them so fast. Once he has a few seconds, you are not going to close that gap anymore.”

It is a familiar picture from the last month of racing. Rivals can follow for a time, sometimes even survive an early acceleration, but once Van der Poel has daylight, the race is effectively over. The difference is no longer tactical. It is physical.

Ten Dam believes that change has been deliberate. “He was not super at the beginning, but he still won. He rode those little climbs on his base fitness, but that real sharpness and being 25 seconds faster per lap than the rest was not there yet.”,

What has impressed Ten Dam most is how controlled that build has been. “He has built such a big engine. With three or four specific training sessions, he can create a peak,” he explained. Just as importantly, that peak can be flattened and rebuilt again. “With some longer training sessions, he can let it drop again. With a few interval sessions towards Omloop, for example, he can then create another peak.”

That ability to time form has obvious implications beyond cyclocross. Van der Poel has previously hinted that he could start Omloop Het Nieuwsblad for the first time, although no final decision has been announced. Ten Dam was unequivocal about what that would mean. “If you see him riding, who is going to beat him there?”

For all the apparent effortlessness, Ten Dam was careful to underline that this level does not come for free. Van der Poel may make dominance look simple, but it is built on sustained work. His success, Ten Dam stressed, is not only about talent, but about the volume and precision of the training that underpins it.

Taken together, the picture is a familiar but still unsettling one for his rivals. Van der Poel arrives at the end of the cyclocross winter not just winning, but accelerating. And if Ten Dam is right, the momentum does not stop when the barriers come down.