Tom Boonen believes "the best Van der Poel ever" is head and shoulders above the rest for Flanders, including Tadej Pogacar
Cycling
Mathieu van der Poel has won the Tour of Flanders on three occasions, and is matched with several of cycling's history-makers as the record holder. One of the others, Tom Boonen, believes there are very big chances that the Dutchman will become the first rider in history to win 'De Ronde' four times and is above Tadej Pogacar going into the race.
"Is the Tour victory record in immediate danger? Absolutely. Records are there to be broken," Boonen stated clearly in an interview with Het Laatste Nieuws. "In a way it is nice that someone like Roger De Vlaeminck has trouble with that – I still regret not being able to wrest that from him for Paris-Roubaix – but if they hold up forever, something must have gone wrong in the past.”
Boonen won on three occasions back in 2005 and 2006, and then had to wait six years to take a triumph once again in 2012. Van der Poel in the meantime won his first eight years later in 2020, and has then won in 2022 and 2024 - whilst in 2023 he was beaten fair and square by the Slovenian.
Although there are a few tremendously talented riders coming into Flanders with great form, it seems difficult that on the climbs anyone will be at the level of Pogacar and van der Poel, who already at Milano-Sanremo proved to be the strongest uphill. However Boonen surprisingly understates the chances of the World Champion winning the race, and instead is very confident that the Alpecin-Deceuninck rider will be the one to do it.
"Mathieu is head and shoulders above the rest," Boonen argues. "Especially after what we saw from him last Friday in the E3 Saxo Classic. I have never seen him so strong before, this is the best Van der Poel ever as far as I am concerned. He exudes courage and self-confidence. When you blast up the Cipressa and Poggio together with Pogacar in Milano - Sanremo without blinking for a second…”
“I saw Tadej pull his face for the first time in his life. Although he may not have been the best version of himself after his crash in the Strade Bianche. Hopefully that has been corrected in the meantime," he concluded.
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💥 Get ready for the 109th @RondeVlaanderen this Sunday!
— Alpecin-Deceuninck Cycling Team (@AlpecinDCK) April 4, 2025
Mathieu van der Poel, our 3-time winner and defending champion, is prepared for another epic showdown. Mathieu and teammates are focused and ready to tackle the iconic cobbles and Flemish hills.
As always, MvdP is… pic.twitter.com/BC6X7nmRb9
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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