"It's all very unfortunate in the end" - Wout Poels ends time with Bahrain - Victorious on the low

Wout Poels will join Astana Qazaqstan Team in a one-year deal next season, and admits that it was unfortunate how his time with Bahrain - Victorious ended. Between that and talking about Tadej Pogacar's World Championships performance, the Dutchman has given an outlook on his year.

"That has subsided by now, though. I watched the last eighty kilometers, and what Pogacar did there was impressive. I could have done well there, significantly to help the team," Poels told In de Leiderstrui. "If you saw how quickly it was split open and what tactics were used, some gaps sometimes needed to be closed. But it is what it is, and in the end, we got an excellent winner. Everyone wishes Pogacar well, even though he has already won so much. He's an exceptional champion".

In reality it would've been hard for Poels to be decisive for Mathieu van der Poel at the World Championships, but his absence was a disappointment, the second of the year. Despite his 37 years of age, the Dutchman performed consistently over the spring and after preparing for the Giro d'Italia, and finishing sixth at the Tour of the Alps, he was not selected to race the Corsa Rosa. The team decided to fully back up Antonio Tiberi who would go on to finish fifth and win the youth classification. The team wanted Poels to hunt stage wins at the Tour de France, but in the summer his form was nowhere near the same.

"It's all very unfortunate in the end. I started very well, with Catalonia and the Tirreno, where I rode well. After that, I wasn't allowed to go to the Giro, but I still won a nice stage in Hungary. Finally, I went on the tour, where I might have hoped for a little more," he says. He admits he had good motivation after striking a deal with Astana who he had been talking with for months, but he ended the season unable to show off more results.

Bahrain - Victorious did want to keep Poels onboard, however his decision was made after the Tour: "Yes, they made me another offer after the tour. But Astana was on my radar by then, and after five years, I thought it was time to make another change."