Mathieu van der Poel has for me the most beautiful style of attack from the whole peloton. 😍 When he is attacking he is pushing monster watts, but he make it look easy like he is flying. And what a beautiful photo it is. 📷: gravelmania_cc Instagram
"We are not all called Tadej Pogacar" - Thijs Zonneveld understands Mathieu van der Poel's choice to end season before Il Lombardia
CyclingFriday, 11 October 2024 at 14:47
This weekend, we're set for a mouth-watering showdown between Tadej Pogacar, Remco Evenepoel and more at the season's final monument... Il Lombardia. Notably absent from the fight though, will be Mathieu van der Poel, who looks to have ended his campaign following his recent Gravel World Championships victory.
Having looked so good just a week or so ago though, could it have been possible for the Alpecin-Deceuninck superstar to push forward for Il Lombardia before ending his season? In his podcast In het Wiel, Dutch ex-pro turned expert analyst Thijs Zonneveld gives his thoughts on the debate.
"With the weight Van der Poel is giving now, you would think, pull on until the Il Lombardia," Zonneveld, who also competed alongside his Dutch compatriot at the recent Gravel World Championships, begins his assessment. "But I admit: that's very much thinking from the sidelines. We are now two weeks after his big goal, the World Championship, and somewhere the decompression also comes and you collapse. We are not all called Tadej Pogacar."
Zonneveld also believes that Il Lombardia might be a step too far for Van der Poel anyway given its renown as the climbers' monument. "He competed once and came 10th," the Dutchman recalls. "But he was beaten by a rider like George Bennett by six minutes. So I can well understand why he is not at the start here."
"Riders like Van Aert and Van der Poel have more chance in Liège-Bastogne-Liège than in Il Lombardia, where you just encounter 13-kilometre climbs," the analyst concludes. "And especially now that Pogacar is competing, Van der Poel's choice is completely understandable."
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- Bruyneel understands nothing about clean competition.Sweep21-12-2024
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- Fortunately and as you point out, more than one strategy is possible and worth trying and I’m sure all concerned riders are well informed and counselled on this subject and don’t need such basic personal advice through media from an outsider.Mistermaumau21-12-2024
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- Avoiding him is a good strategy, you get more wins and then you can compete in the TDF relatively relaxed. Pit yourself against Pogi and not only there will be no wins, it will be considerable mental setbackabstractengineer21-12-2024