“No Pogacar, no Van Aert, no need to doubt” – Philippe Gilbert predicts Mathieu van der Poel dominance at E3 despite injury concerns

Mathieu van der Poel’s Milano-Sanremo crash has introduced a rare question mark ahead of the cobbled Classics, but not everyone is convinced it changes anything at all.

Despite the Dutchman being left unable to properly hold his handlebars in the decisive phase of the race, the expectation remains that he will take control at the E3 Saxo Classic, particularly with his two biggest rivals absent.

Philippe Gilbert was unequivocal when assessing the situation in conversation with Het Nieuwsblad, insisting: “Van der Poel, of course. No Pogacar, no Van Aert at the start, then there’s no need to doubt.”

Gilbert’s confidence is not built on absence alone, but on what he believes Milano-Sanremo actually showed. “Without that crash, Mathieu would always have stayed with them on the Poggio.”

In his view, the defining image of Van der Poel being dropped late in the race does not reflect a gap in level, but a moment shaped by circumstance. Strip away the crash, and the expectation is that he would have remained right at the front. That is what underpins the certainty in his earlier assessment. Not just that Van der Poel is the best option available, but that he remains at the level required to dominate.

That reading is shared elsewhere. “Sanremo tells you nothing about the races that are coming now. He came up against a super, super Pogacar there,” Dirk De Wolf explained.

Rather than raising concerns, the Poggio moment is being treated as a race-specific outcome, one driven by an exceptional performance from Pogacar and the added complication of the crash.

In that context, Van der Poel’s inability to follow is not seen as a warning sign ahead of the cobbled Classics.

If anything, the conditions around E3 only reinforce Gilbert’s position. “With the level he’s at now, he would always have been in contention for the win,” Benoit Naesen said of Wout van Aert.

Remove Van Aert and Pogacar from the equation, and the number of riders capable of matching Van der Poel shrinks dramatically. “Because of that, we’ll get a very open race on Friday,” Oliver Naesen added.

But that openness does not extend to the very front of the race.

That is the key distinction. The race may offer more opportunities, more attacking options, and more unpredictability behind. But the expectation at the front remains unchanged.

Van der Poel arrives with a minor question mark after Sanremo. But he also arrives without his two biggest rivals, and with the backing of those who believe his level has not dropped.

Gilbert’s stance is clear. Even with the injury. Even after Sanremo. There is still no need to doubt.