"This generation no longer does towing or sucking wheels" Thijs Zonneveld about the new generation riders
Cycling
Mathieu van der Poel has proven himself to be a man in form and at the E3 Saxo Classic perhaps consolidated himself as the main favourite for the Tour of Flanders. However, in the right circumstances, he can be put under pressure or dropped as was the case at Gent - Wevelgem, and Thijs Zonneveld discusses the World Champion's defeat this past weekend.
"This generation no longer does towing or sucking wheels, while that was the case in the not so distant past. It's just not in their heads anymore," Thijs Zonneveld said in the Het Wiel podcast. "They just make it a tough fight, even though it's not the best choice tactically. Maybe it makes defeat easier to accept, but I like it. These guys meet each other so often and from the moment they start hitting on each other, it's over. It might help them win a race, but in the long run it will cost them more than it will bring them in.”
Whilst Team Visma | Lease a Bike have great quality in numbers, they were not on their best day at E3 where only van Aert and Matteo Jorgenson rode towards the front in the decisive moments of the race. At Gent - Wevelgem Lidl-Trek had Pedersen, Jonathan Milan and Jasper Stuyven. They managed to use Milan's attacks to force van der Poel into spending a lot of time in the wind.
"You really have to make sure that Van der Poel rides behind you instead of the other way around. They finished Van der Poel to such an extent that Pedersen was able to gain the upper hand," he explains. "It was indeed very daring and could have come back to their faces like a boomerang, but in the end it was extremely clever. There were actually some cracks in the rainbow armor and that is only the merit of Lidl-Trek. We looked at a way to slaughter a superhuman rider."
In Flanders this will be tougher though, as the route is much more compact with difficult climbs and cobbled sectors, and there aren't long flat sections except for the one leading back into Oudenaarde. "Gent-Wevelgem is indeed less difficult, because there is no succession of cobblestones and hills here. This race suits Pedersen very well, because there are few steep climbs here and on the flat he is simply great.
"Getting a lot of riders to move forward very early is also more difficult in the Tour, while that is the only way not to let him slaughter you," he says. However in terms of numbers Alpecin-Deceuninck hasn't shown the best in the cobbles so far, and van der Poel may be vulnerable to attacks from both teams.
Read also
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.
claps 2visitors 2
Just in
Popular news
Latest comments
- I think other competitors also had great Tours, so it wasn't that Ferrand-Prévot necessarily failed in some way - it's more likely that the other top riders lifted their game and maybe also a bit of luck with no crashes, etc. It's the Tour de France after all. It's not meant to be easy to defend your title (the few exceptions like Pogacar prove the rule).Pogboom01-11-2026
- maybe we should put our cv at the end of each comment post ... same rights for all of us!Ketterechts01-11-2026
- hahah literally all it is. Glad im not the only one noticing, essentially this is just a blog as it is now. Run buy boys from their bedroom hehe Their very subjective aswell, people on twitter even said their pure visma fanboys, if you listen to Ruben silva guy pre TDF this year all he said turned out to be wrong and constantly fail to realize visma isnt where they was before roster wice or means to contest even RBH or Lidl anymore, ,very biased ppl and when you run ''news articles that way its problematic..miguel01-11-2026
- The new joke of the year in 2027: "If both guys (Pogi and Seixas) finish upright on their bikes and both don't get sick for some reason, I think Paul will fight Tadej to the end and will possibly beat him in 2027 at the Tour, yes, I just said that." ... ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ...PogiSloFans01-11-2026
- Cutting his suit up and getting him to sign it while quite seriously injured is absolutely ghoulishwrsty01-11-2026
- 24 years old?Ketterechts01-11-2026
- Hey @frieder3, yeah sure, bull crap. What experience? You have no eyperience, you're an amateur cyclist... and to make things even worse, you're a lousy amateur cyclist. So what you're saying about your C7 has no relevance... do you even know where C7 is in your body? No, it's not in your knee!!! PS: Trump loves ya... 😍😍😍PogiSloFans01-11-2026
- He won't have a neck problem until he's older and arthritis kicks in lil guy !frieders301-11-2026
- Yep I find any way possible to not have other listen to Bob and VandeVelde commenting on a bike race. His annoying wrong predictions and irritating chuckle are mute worthy!frieders301-11-2026
- 20 winners for 3rd year in a row!Lozza31-10-2026
Loading
1 Comments