"Things suddenly looked much bleaker for us" - No Evenepoel or Van Aert, Belgium leaves Montréal worlds on a dark note
CyclingMonday, 28 September 2026 at 13:00
Belgium finished the World Championships' men's elite road race without a man in the Top10. Team national coach Serge Pauwels reflected on a day where neither Wout Van Aert or Remco Evenepoel rode according to expectations.
The plans were clear for Belgium, even on a day where race radios were not allowed. Alec Segaert helped control the breakaway of over a dozen riders and when the race began seeing big moves with just over 100 kilometers to go, Quinten Hermans and Thibau Nys were on their case.
Mathieu van der Poel then played his cards, with Wout Van Aert joining him in a large group ahead of the peloton. The duo would go on the attack once again shortly after and form a six-rider group that was a large threat.
“Things looked promising at the start of the local laps. The French played all their cards and turned it into a grueling race," Pauwels looked back following the race in words to Sporza. "That wasn't bad for us, as Remco and Wout stood to benefit from a war of attrition that would blunt the explosive power of riders like Isaac Del Toro and Paul Seixas.”
From top to bottom in a few minutes
The situation actually looked perfect for the Belgians, with Van Aert consolidated in a group with lots of momentum and similar riders; whilst Remco Evenepoel had not pressure to attack or work behind, whilst the likes of Isaac del Toro and Paul Seixas became isolated.
“He made a good move and blew the race open. But when he was dropped by Mathieu van der Poel, things suddenly looked much bleaker for us".
Van Aert had legs, but could not hold the pace of the van der Poel group, who continued to attack, splitting it in half. The team's depth then lots some of its meaning, as Evenepoel was no longer in the same relaxed position.
But shortly after, there was another negative turn. "We could no longer play his card. Wout quickly adapted and worked for Remco, but it soon became apparent that Remco wasn't having his best day.”
Wout Van Aert attacked, but didn't have the legs in Montréal
Remco Evenepoel did not have the legs
With 60 kilometers to go Evenepoel was dropped. His performance resembled that of a roller-coaster, getting dropped and returning to the main group - and attacking - in multiple instances.
Evenepoel finished outside of the Top10, just behind the main chasing group, but throughout the race made several comebacks and in certain moments even appeared to be on the rise when most riders were fading.
Van Aert paced for Evenepoel to return to the group and then control the gap to the van der Poel group, but the Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe rider then did not have the means to finish off thr work.
“I haven't spoken to him yet, but from what I gather, it just wasn't in the cards today. That said, I want to hear from them whether any tactical errors were made. If so, that is obviously my responsibility.”
“As I see it, Remco didn't have the legs he had hoped for," Pauwels aknowledges. "On the other hand, I tried to motivate him during the race by reminding him of Rwanda. In Kigali, he was in a hopeless position but still managed to contend for a medal.”
Whilst Evenepoel won the time trial, his performance in the road race resembled that of the GP de Montréal, showcasing the Olympic Champion in a less confident light than the Tour de France version of himself he had earlier this summer.
“He managed to claw his way back with a lap to go yet again. At that point, a lot was still possible for someone with something left in the tank. But the sprint was the clearest proof that he didn’t have that. And so, naturally, we are disappointed with the result.”
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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- I’ve even come to appreciate his fanboy(s), they liven up the place.Mistermaumau28-09-2026
- Totally agree, surprised he was still mixing it. Any idea how a DS would remind him or even notice without radios? Until what point did he have a teammate and when did he make his mistake? I’d like to know how much of a « disgrace » this really is.Mistermaumau28-09-2026
- Yes for sure. UAE is just absolutely wild indeed.. When pogacar not there his teammates won montreal and WC haha beating the best guy on other teams themselves remco seixas etc haha even when their captain pogacar is not there. They are truly demolishing everyone and a crazy insane team by far best ever by now surely. Actually to the point its starting to really intriguing how special they are.miguel28-09-2026
- Fantastic result for a rider who thoroughly deserves it.whit2pet28-09-2026
- He's been over-raced imo this yr
leedorney28-09-2026 - Literally no one hates Tadej on this site. I don’t think anyone hates any of the cyclists in the peloton, for that matter. So, shush, and stop making every discussion about yourself.anonymouscyclist28-09-2026
- In other words, we not be seeing the jersey much at all then ;-) Too bad he extended his contact already.Jumpyjohn28-09-2026
- BS argument, on the contrary, it’s what makes it more interesting. If rider safety would be the REAL issue, teams still don’t need radio, you can let riders have radio, only connecting to organisers. Let the UCI call team managers bluff by asking them to vote for this and see what excuses they find for arguing only teams can handle the safety issue., on closed frequencies.Jumpyjohn28-09-2026
- And so many people wrote him off or ignored his chances in advance None of those that were supposed to be stronger or better suited or ranked better beat him in the end.Jumpyjohn28-09-2026
- We’ll have to see how much is revealed in the interviews over the next years. Perhaps an invitation to the old white man’s house was sent to the UCI to influence things a little, just humour (for now).Jumpyjohn28-09-2026
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