ANALYSIS | Should Mathieu van der Poel retire from cyclocross in 2026?

The question of when, not whether, Mathieu van der Poel will eventually walk away from cyclocross is no longer abstract. It is being openly discussed by the rider himself, in public and behind closed doors, at a moment when he is still winning and still central to the sport. With another winter of dominance underway and a record eighth world title within reach on home soil, the timing feels deliberate rather than forced. What makes the debate compelling is that stepping away now would not be an act of decline, but of control.

Van der Poel’s words to Het Laatste Nieuws were unusually direct for an athlete who often keeps his future deliberately vague. “It is something I think about, yes. I have always said it would be very nice to stop in my own country with the record. For the rest, there would not be much more left for me to achieve in cyclocross,” he said.

The logic is hard to dispute. With seven world titles already secured, he is one victory away from standing alone at the top of the discipline’s all-time list. Achieving that in the Netherlands, in front of crowds that have followed him since childhood, would be a closing chapter few champions ever get to write on their own terms.

And let’s be honest, right now, it does not look like anyone can stop him.

Context matters here. Van der Poel has been racing elite cyclocross for more than a decade, and the sport has been the foundation of his identity long before his road palmarès exploded. He has already surpassed every modern benchmark for consistency, peak performance, and longevity in the discipline. The question he now raises is not whether he can continue, but whether there is a meaningful reason to do so once the ultimate milestone is reached. As he put it himself, “For the rest, there would not be much more left for me to achieve in cyclocross.”

That idea of choosing the exit rather than having it chosen for him comes up repeatedly in his comments. “I always wanted to stop on a high point. If you then finish fifth in Hoogerheide, there will be an aftertaste,” he explained.

The reference is telling. Van der Poel is not interested in symbolic participation or ceremonial returns. He is acutely aware of how quickly dominance can erode, and how legacy can subtly shift if the ending feels drawn out. “I am not saying I assume I will become world champion in Hulst, but then I do have the choice to do it there.”

There is also a practical dimension. Cyclocross, even for someone as gifted as van der Poel, demands a specific type of intensity, travel, and mental focus through the winter months. “We have talked about it internally a few times. It is something I think about, yes. I am not getting any younger,” he said.

At 30, he remains physically supreme, but he is clear-eyed about the risks of assuming that will always be the case. “Right now I am still at a very high level, but who says that will still be the case in two, three years? I do not know, because I do not have a crystal ball.”

The strongest argument for stepping back from cyclocross after 2026, or even sooner, lies in what it might unlock elsewhere. Van der Poel has built one of the most complete road careers of his generation, and his ambitions there are far from exhausted. He structures his seasons around the spring classics, and in 2025 he achieved what very few have done before winning both Milano–Sanremo and Paris–Roubaix in the same spring. Those victories were both after an intense battle with the world’s best rider, Tadej Pogacar.

Cyclocross has always been part of that preparation, but van der Poel openly questions whether it remains essential. “I do not think I absolutely need cyclocross to reach my best level. Certainly not. Maybe without cross it could even be better? If you do not try it, you do not know,” he said.

That uncertainty is important. For the first time, he is seriously considering a winter built entirely around road preparation: more rest, fewer races, longer training blocks in stable conditions.

His comments about Spain underline that thinking. “I would mainly do it with a view to the road season, yes. To be able to take a bit more rest during the winter. By being able to stay in Spain all winter, for example, and train there,” he explained. The trade-off is clear. Less racing in front of packed Belgian and Dutch crowds, but potentially more consistency across a long road season that now also includes a serious Tour de France programme.

The Tour itself complicates the picture. Van der Poel has never hidden that July matters to him, even if general classification ambitions are not the goal. In 2025, he finally came alive again at the Tour for the first time in four years, and lit up the race like we have not seen before. So perhaps he has fallen in love with cycling’s blue ribboned race?

Maintaining freshness through to the summer is increasingly difficult when the calendar begins in December at full intensity. Removing cyclocross entirely could extend his peak deeper into the year, something that matters as his road responsibilities expand.

There is also the unresolved ambition on the mountain bike. Van der Poel has repeatedly said that the Olympic-format MTB world title is the one rainbow jersey missing from his collection. That goal requires a different preparation again, one that may be incompatible with a full cyclocross winter. And that showed earlier this year, where Van der Poel could not unlock his best form at the mountain bike worlds. From that perspective, reducing or ending his cross programme could be less about closing a door and more about opening another.

Yet the case for continuing cyclocross beyond 2026 is just as strong, and far more emotional. Van der Poel does not speak about the discipline as a contractual obligation or a training tool. “The cyclocross itself, of course. That is still what I love most. And the crowd. I grew up with that atmosphere,” he admitted.

Cyclocross is not simply something he does, it is where his relationship with racing was formed, where his family name carries unique meaning, and where his connection with fans is most visceral.

There is also the possibility that circumstances change. The potential inclusion of cyclocross in the 2030 Winter Olympics could radically alter priorities. An Olympic title would instantly become a new peak, reframing the idea that “there would not be much more left” to achieve. Van der Poel has not committed either way, but he acknowledges that such a development could influence his thinking.

Perhaps most telling is how carefully he avoids finality. “We will see. It is certainly not a final decision,” he said. Even as he lays out the arguments for stepping away, he leaves space for instinct, enjoyment, and opportunity to intervene. That ambiguity feels genuine rather than strategic.

So will Mathieu van der Poel continue cyclocross beyond 2026? Based on his own words, the answer depends less on form than on timing. If he secures the eighth world title in Hulst, on home soil, the logic of stopping there is compelling. It would be a rare ending shaped entirely by choice. But cyclocross is also the discipline he admits he would miss most, the one tied to his earliest memories and strongest emotions.

What seems clear is that this will not be a slow fade. Whether he stops soon or carries on a little longer, van der Poel is intent on deciding the moment himself. In a sport that rarely grants that luxury, that alone would be a fitting final statement.