Today's cyclocross in Herentals promises to deliver a lot of action. Whilst Fem van Empel is the outright favourite to win the women's race, the men's event sees the return of Mathieu van der Poel and Tom Pidcock, against a stacked field.
"It was a piece of cake for Wout, it will be a walkover for Mathieu," cyclocross legend Niels Albert said in conversation to Het Laatste Nieuws. The former pro has kept a close eye on the riders who are aiming for success in the discipline and he believes Mathieu van der Poel is the big favourite to win today. Alpecin-Deceuninck manager Christoph Roodhoft has talked about how the Dutchman impressed recently in training against his teammates.
So we've got him against Tom Pidcock who is also a wildcard when it comes to form, but is very well suited to this type of tough climbing track. The two will face off against many riders in form however, such as Lars van der Haar, Eli Iserbyt, Cameron Mason and Michael Vanthourenhout in a race that will certainly deliver a lot of spectacle.
With charged batteries we start a weekend of two tough CX races. Tomorrow: @X2OTrofee in Herentals & that’s the start of the CX season for @mathieuvdpoel, @GVermeersch, @Quintenhermans and Timo Kielich. No Ceylin, she is focusing on @UCIcyclocrossWC in Namur. #alpecindeceuninck
