Nathan van Hooydonck confident in Wout van Aert's abilities to win this spring: "He’s hungry and really wants it"

Nathan van Hooydonck was a key part of Team Visma | Lease a Bike's classics squad back when he was a pro but nowadays he continues to guide the team's best in these races. He knows Wout van Aert just as well as anyone in the peloton, and he is confident that the Belgian is giving the right signs towards the spring clasics.

In the Volta ao Algarve, all of van Aert's teammates at some point put in work to help his chances of winning stage 4, as he has done for Ben Tulett at the Clásica Jaén Paraiso Interior. The Belgian praises the team's attitude towards it's leaders and also younger riders.

"That was also for his own benefit—because in our team, the goal is always to improve. That’s how we work: if you’re not good enough to win, you help someone else. Wout was also focused on putting in that extra effort rather than just giving up," Van Hooydonck said in the Wuyts & Vlaeminck podcast.

In the Algarve he missed on a strong result in the bunch sprints, but admittedly he also had nowhere near the leadout of his rivals or even teammate Olav Kooij. "Maybe he’s still missing a bit of sharpness. In the sprint, he could have been a bit more aggressive and taken more risks. But on the other hand, he didn’t really have a dedicated lead-out man. Tiesj did a great job positioning him in the final kilometer a few times, and from there, Wout had to figure it out on his own, so to speak."

"If Christophe Laporte had been there, those guys would have cruised through the final kilometer, and Christophe would have ensured that Wout could start his sprint from second or third position. When you have a clear path, you don’t have to worry about anyone else," van Hooydonck argues - but the Frenchman, due to illness, was forced to change his early-season schedule completely and the team is now hoping he can at least regain his best form into the classics.

However, van Hooydonck doesn't stress too much about van Aert's lack of a victory this early in the year. "It’s also important to remember that this is just a preparation race. These aren’t Wout’s biggest goals. Of course, he wants to sprint and win quickly, but he also knows that’s not what it’s all about. It’s about the big prizes, and that starts on Saturday."

However his second place in the final time-trial is a great sign of form, and that van Aert will be a serious contender to win at the Opening Weekend in a few days. "From what I’ve heard from the guys in the team, who were with him at training camp, he’s feeling good. That’s a sign of confidence. I saw a little bit of disappointment on Wout’s face there, but I actually like that. It means he’s hungry and really wants it."