"I certainly do not consider myself out of contention" - Can Wout van Aert challenge Tadej Pogacar and Remco Evenepoel at World Championships?
CyclingMonday, 03 August 2026 at 09:30
Wout van Aert jump-started his season after Tour de France disappointment this week at the Tour of Denmark, and he believes he can be ready and roaring at the World Championships. But can he rival high-flying duo Tadej Pogacar and Remco Evenepoel? The Paris Roubaix winner doesn't see why not.
The Visma | Lease a Bike rider strolled to three stage wins and the overall victory in Denmark this week, winning three in a row before a breakaway spoiled the party on stage four and he found himself boxed in come the final sprint on stage five.
Speaking candidly after his Denmark stint was wrapped up, van Aert opened up on a difficult period leaving him enviously glancing at the Tour de France as he was forced to change his plans.
“It may sound strange, but I would rather not have been here and would have preferred to ride the Tour de France,” he told HLN.
“It was not a pleasant period, but you always have to be ready to change your plans. I am really looking forward to everything that is still to come this autumn.”
Visma rider missed Tour de France
Of course, the 31-year-old was alluding to his June setback after suffering a training crash, a wound on his elbow failed to heal as he was racing the Tour Auvergne-Rhone-Alpes. An infection saw him leave that race and derailled his Tour preparation. Ultimately, van Aert lost the race against time to make La Grand Boucle.
Taking the disappointment on the chin, he re-focused on Denmark and now looks towards the Vuelta a Espana as an attractive proposition to chase stage wins.
However, with the time trial position still causing pain from the Tour-ending injury, he admitted that discipline may be on the back burner for a while.
“Supporting myself in the time trial position caused a lot of pain,” he said. “But we will work extremely hard on that over the coming weeks. The whole first week looks attractive. We will be going for stage wins because there are opportunities.”
Wout van Aert on stage 5 of the 2026 Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
Vuelta and World Championships goal
With the Vuelta a Espana wrapping up on September 13th, the World Championships are also on the Visma rider's mind. Making no secret of his ambitions to wear the rainbow stripes, van Aert admitted that both Tadej Pogacar and Remco Evenepoel are the favourites.
Noting his strong performances in Montreal in the past, he refused to rule himself out as a contender.
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He said: “Tadej and Remco are different types of riders to me. It is a hard course and it will always be right on the limit for me. But I have finished second in Montréal before.
“If I am at my absolute best, I definitely have a chance. I certainly do not consider myself out of contention, and that is why I want to go all in.”
Gavin QuinnCycling Journalist
Gavin Quinn is a cycling journalist and ultra-distance cyclist with a BA in Journalism from Dublin City University. Formerly the Press & Communications Officer for Cycling Ireland, Gavin has worked inside the national team at the World Championships and has reported for the Irish Mirror, Mirror UK, and The42.
His expertise is backed by elite-level access, having interviewed stars like Sam Bennett and Ben Healy, as well as immense personal endurance. In 2025, he completed a 12,000km solo cycle from Ireland to Vietnam, following a 4,600km tour across Europe. From the cobbles of Paris-Roubaix to the gradients of the Tourmalet, Gavin’s writing focuses on the "romance and brutality" of the sport. Having visited 50+ countries, he brings a global, cultural perspective to his coverage of the pro peloton for CyclingUpToDate.
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- Manosphere? You mean guys like Andrew or frieder6? Yeah, I guess they do have anti-feminist views, strict ideas about masculinity, and hostility toward women.PogiSloFans03-08-2026
- Good for Pogi, I think he can do it. But just two weeks to recover for the world championships road race might be difficult right after two grand tours. Maybe Remco takes the rainbow jersey then, if he specifically prepares for it.Ride197403-08-2026
- Cyclinguptodate: "Their relationship, between Pogi and Jonas, may be friendlier away from racing, but another fight for the yellow jersey remains firmly in Vingegaard’s plans." I don't think so, his wife Trine is saying something completely different. My take is: Jonas knows, Team Visma knows, Trine knows, that never again will Jonas beat Pogi in TdF. Yes, if Pogi crashes and hurts himself, or if he gets ill, it can happen, but does Jonas really want to win in such a way? I don't think so. Jonas has won all three Grand Tours (btw Pogi will win them this year)... Jonas won most of the big one week stage races. So what's left for him? Nothing. Jonas racing and beating cyclists that are not Pogi means nothing to him. I know he's thinkig about retirement. Don't blame him... he has nothing to prove to anyone. Ad acta.PogiSloFans03-08-2026
- All because you recruited the wrong riders for a large sum of money. Scouting is bad.abstractengineer03-08-2026
- Cyclinguptodate: "Their relationship, between Pogi and Jonas, may be friendlier away from racing, but another fight for the yellow jersey remains firmly in Vingegaard’s plans." I don't think so, his wife Trine is saying something completely different: "If Jonas said he didn’t want to race again, I would understand, but I also do not know which races would be the obvious ones for him. And I have no idea how he will recover from that collarbone injury. When you look at his season as a whole, it is clear that you are very drained. You are constantly switched on, and when you are an introvert like he is, that takes energy out of him. Objectively speaking, riding two Grand Tours is also a huge achievement, with a lot of race days and a great deal of time spent away.” My take is: Jonas knows, Team Visma knows, Trine knows, that never again will Jonas beat Pogi. Yes, if Pogi crashes and hurts himself, or if Pogi gets ill, it can all happen, then Jonas can win, but we all know what kind of win that would be. Jonas has won all three Grand Tours (Pogi will win them this year)... Jonas won most of the big one week stage races. So what's left for him? Nothing. Jonas racing and beating cyclists that are not Pogi means nothing to him. I think Jonas is thinkig about retirement. Don't blame him... he has nothing to prove to anyone.PogiSloFans03-08-2026
- A shadow of their former self..
leedorney03-08-2026 - From what Jonas has said recently as well, maybe in hindsight they think he should have resisted the pressure in 2024 to go for three Tour wins in a row, and instead taken all the time he needed to recover fully from his Itzulia crash before racing again. That effort may have set him further back in the long run. It was painful to watch him making such efforts with so little muscle mass, and almost fainting at the end of the Galibier downhill on Stage 4.Hills3303-08-2026
- I mean she probably doesn't want to see her loved one destroy his body. As well as I'm sure she would love to have him help raise their young children and be present in their lives. Cycling is wonderful but is by no means the most important thing in life.bruins3003-08-2026
- Pog is still the favourite but remco is 100% the next best and pogs main rival here, and may surprise pog especially on this coursebruins3003-08-2026
- NOmij03-08-2026
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