Mathieu van der Poel ready for World Championships following GP de Wallonie win: "The strongest in the race really wins, and I'm glad I was"

Mathieu van der Poel started the GP de Wallonie as a main favourite, and on the road he confirmed that status as he rode to the win atop the Citadelle de Namur on his way back to the wins.

"I actually wanted to put on the sprint for Jasper, but I don't think he felt 100% either. I then closed the last gap and started sprinting. I didn't see anyone in my wheel and luckily I was able to continue my sprint to the finish," van der Poel said at the finish. On a rainy day in Belgium, they puncheurs had a good opportunity as the route didn't feature many difficulties, and the riders headed towards a sprint atop the final ascent.

Being a big-ring climb it allowed several fast riders to climb up near the front, namely Biniam Girmay and Jasper Philipsen. Van der Poel had taken to the front of the group in the final few hundred meters to reel in the late attack from Dylan Teuns and Gonzalo Serrano, but found himself not only closing the gap, but having the best legs in the final sprint.

As Philipsen didn't have the legs, it was the Dutchman himself sprinting to the win. “I didn't realize it was so long ago that a Dutchman won here," he said. "I love these arrivals. The team has worked a lot today, so I'm happy to finish it. It was really a tough race. In the end, after such a climb, the strongest in the race really wins, and I'm glad I was."

This being van der Poel's final race before the World Championships, it was urgent for him to put on a strong performance in order to have the confidence into Wollongong. Having crossed the line first on the day, it was the result the Alpecin-Deceuninck rider had ambitioned.