"I have only seen Mathieu van der Poel in Milano-Sanremo. He looked very strong" - Wout van Aert well aware of rival's immense form

After a spell back at altitude, Wout van Aert re-starts his 2024 road season on the 22nd of March at the E3 Saxo Classic, a race he has won the last two years.

"I notice that I am doing well at the moment. Everything went very well during training, which gives confidence," says the Belgian in a pre-race press conference in quotes collected by HLN. "But of course you always have to wait and see when you try something new. The past has shown that I always reach good heights. It is a very nice race, the toughest in Flanders after the Tour of Flanders. The final often starts from a distance. Due to the difficult course, which is close to the Tour, it is a good test for the Tour."

Although van Aert has been absent from racing since the end of February, the Team Visma | Lease a Bike star has been keeping a keen eye on what's been going on. "I was able to see all the major races, including Milano-Sanremo," he says but there are no regrets on his part for missing the race. "That's what you have when you fall ill and have to change something in your planning, but this time it was always the plan not to start."

"I have only seen Mathieu van der Poel in Milano-Sanremo. He looked very strong. I expect him to be present in the Flemish races," van Aert continues, aware of his rival's immense form. "I won't be back from my internship until tomorrow. I'll take E3 in the same breath, but after that I want to rest for a few days to really let the altitude internship take full effect. That's why I chose Dwars door Vlaanderen and not Ghent -Wevelgem."

One man who definitely won't be present in the coming races though, is Tadej Pogacar. "It is an advantage for the entire peloton that Pogacar does not start in the Tour of Flanders, I think," van Aert laughs although his team too is missing a key man. "We will certainly miss Christophe Laporte on Friday. He is one of the strong points of the team, who has made great strides in recent years. In Sanremo you could already see that something was wrong. Hopefully he can recover well, so that we can get back on track."

"I have been feeling less pressure all year than in the past. It is always a challenge to deal with it. In 2023, for the first time, I felt that it was less than the year before," van Aert concludes. "That has given me some insights that I shouldn't do it for anyone else but myself. That gives me peace."