PREVIEW & FAVOURITES | Renewi Tour 2025 stage 5 - Will Mathieu van der Poel be able to dethrone Arnaud de Lie?
Cycling
Stage 5 of the Renewi Tour will take place in the hilly and technical circuit that has been used in the 2021 World Championships in Leuven. We preview the final day of the race in which the sprinters and classics riders will have an interesting battle, and with the lead of Arnaud de Lie being held by 1 second over Mathieu van der Poel, we can expect fireworks.
The race ends in Leuven this year, not Geraardsbergen, but we could see an even more interesting and dramatic finale. The stage begins and finishes in the city that hosted the 2021 World Championships and towards the end, the riders will tackle four laps of the very same circuit.
This is an urban circuit in a hilly city, an incredibly explosive one - where Julian Alaphilippe conquered the rainbow jersey four years ago. Looking at the profile it does not look very difficult, but the combination of the many small climbs, many turns and lack of fully flat roads makes it the ideal environment for tactic and chaotic racing. This is a day where the GC can be turned on it's head and early attacks in the circuit can succeed.
And we can certainly expect Mathieu van der Poel to go crazy on this circuit, as he is in good form and has incredible bike handling skills that will make closing any gap to him almost impossible. He wants the overall win, but on the other side we've got an insanely powerful peak form Arnaud de Lie who will be a nightmare to drop at the same time. A battle of titans, with several GC riders looking to surprise on this key day of the race too.
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Profile
Stage 5: Leuven - Leuven, 184.6 kilometers
Prediction Renewi Tour 2025 stage 5:
*** Mathieu van der Poel, Arnaud de Lie
** Tim Wellens, Tibor del Grosso, Axel Laurance
* Alberto Bettiol, Fred Wright, Matej Mohoric, Olav Kooij, Pavel Bittner, Paul Magnier, Jasper Stuyven, Florian Vermeersch, Mathias Vacek, Thibau Nys
** Tim Wellens, Tibor del Grosso, Axel Laurance
* Alberto Bettiol, Fred Wright, Matej Mohoric, Olav Kooij, Pavel Bittner, Paul Magnier, Jasper Stuyven, Florian Vermeersch, Mathias Vacek, Thibau Nys
Pick: Mathieu van der Poel
How: The technical and explosive circuit is perfect for van der Poel, and I think that although it will be a very hard task, he will be able to make the difference and take a solo win.
Original: Rúben Silva
Rúben SilvaEditor-in-Chief
A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
Beyond editorial work, he has been closely involved in the expansion and coordination of CyclingUpToDate’s wider network, helping establish and support sister platforms across multiple languages. This includes ongoing collaboration with CiclismoAlDia (Spanish), CiclismoAtual (Portuguese), WielrennenUpToDate (Dutch), and RadsportAktuell (German), contributing to a shared editorial vision and consistent international coverage.
He also helps oversee editorial governance across the network, setting standards for accuracy and consistency and coordinating updates or corrections when needed.
Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
Within 18 months of launch, he helped grow CyclingUpToDate’s English-language platform into one of the most-read cycling news websites, built entirely from the ground up. As both a professional journalist and lifelong cycling enthusiast, his focus remains on delivering accurate, timely, and well-contextualized coverage.
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