"You need a bit of luck and good legs. I had both today" - Mathieu van der Poel reaches glory once again at Paris-Roubaix

Mathieu van der Poel has won Milano-Sanremo, finished second at the Tour of Flanders, and today in the third monument of the season he's won Paris-Roubaix. A brutal race, but one where Alpecin-Deceuninck thrived, and saw the Dutchman ride to victory.

“I had one of my best days ever on a bike," van der Poel admitted in a post-race interview. He responded to the early attack of Wout van Aert with just over 100 kilometers to go and was in the mix alongside Jasper Philipsen and Gianni Vermeersch. With numerical advantage and clear good form the team was in a great position, but despite this van der Poel attacked several times throughout the afternoon. However it was all to play for in the final 20 kilometers as there was a big balance within the front.

At Carrefour de l'Arbre everything was decided. It was a dramatic few minutes, as he firstly clashed with John Degenkolb. "I felt very strong and already tried to attack a few times. It was difficult to unload the boys. On the last stretch, Degenkolb first had a fall, so I had to close a gap to Wout," he said. As van Aert attacked, van der Poel was the only one to respond, but towards the end of the sector the Jumbo-Visma rider punctured, and everything changed.

"I think he had a puncture. After that I was alone in the front. Then I rode as fast as possible to the line. Not at first, but when I passed him, his pace was slow," he described. "I knew he had a problem, but I didn't know it was a flat tire. It's a pity, because otherwise the two of us might have ridden to the line. Unfortunately, that is sometimes part of the race. I said before that you need a bit of luck and good legs. I had both today.”

Van der Poel got the gap and had the legs. He soloed to a massive victory and another monument to his collection. The Dutchman had Jasper Philipsen - who then finished second - covering attacks behind and comfortably rode into the velodrome in the lead, to take an emotional win. “It's hard to describe. I'm doing my best spring classic ever. This was my last race and to end it like this is a dream. Today I love Roubaix."

"It's such a tough race. I think it might be the fastest edition ever. It was race from start to finish, it was unbelievable how fast it went. But like I said, I felt very strong. I have been very happy to finish the work of the team," he concluded.