“I didn’t get up to speed right away, but I felt my legs were good” – Michael Vanthourenhout claims dramatic victory in Overijse after poor start
Cyclocross
Michael Vanthourenhout turned a shaky beginning into a spectacular victory at the Druivencross Overijse on Sunday, confirming his excellent start of the season.
The Pauwels Sauzen - Altez Industriebouw Cycling Team rider endured a difficult first lap, finding himself only in 18th position. Gradually finding his rhythm, he began overtaking riders one by one. After about half an hour of racing, he was back at the front of the field, forming a leading duo with Dutch rider Pim Ronhaar.
In the decisive final lap, Vanthourenhout attacked on the climbs, leaving Ronhaar behind and riding solo to the finish. Reflecting on his performance in the post-race interview, he admitted the early struggles: “I didn’t get up to speed right away. Luckily, I felt my legs were good, and uphill I could make up a few places each time.”
Ronhaar’s late acceleration forced Vanthourenhout to dig deep. “When Pim went full gas, I had to give everything I had. But I could tell he had fired his last bullets and was starting to crack. Then it was enough to go all out in the final lap.”
The victory marked Vanthourenhout’s second win in as many rounds of the Superprestige series, and the third of the 2025/2026 cyclocross season. His consistency has already given him a five-point lead over defending champion Niels Vandeputte.
“Two out of two in the Superprestige was not something I expected,” Vanthourenhout said with satisfaction. “The season couldn’t start any better.”
Last week, Vanthourenhout narrowly defeated Joris Nieuwenhuis in a sprint at the Telenet Superprestige Ruddervoorde in what was his second victory of the season, after winning the Swiss Cyclocross Cup #1 - Internationales Radquer Steinmaur on October 12.
Félix SernaCycling Journalist
Félix Serna is a writer at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2025. He covers professional cycling across both the men’s and women’s calendars, with a focus on UCI rankings, race developments, and rider performance. His work includes interview-based reports, liveblogs, and tournament coverage designed to provide clear, accurate context throughout the season.
In his reporting, Félix regularly uses ProCyclingStats for results, statistics, and historical reference. He places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles promptly when new, verified information becomes available. He holds a bachelor’s degree in International Studies.
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- I get the point totally. We live in the snowflake society where some riders forget they are getting paid to ride and get results. When they have a few issues they try to look outside of the real issue instead of themselves. It odd so many of the team are making no complaints and getting on with their job. If you do not like what you do find another job simples. Tough love as my mum would say.paultryan200207-11-2026
- many people advise him to grow slowly and rather do giro and/or vuelta instead of tdf. but i can totally understand that he is not satisfied with taking over once pogi declines, but instead beat him in his prime. so if he goes for tdf again, i‘m all for it. let‘s hope that pogi recovers soon!Ketterechts07-11-2026
- So gracious to offer something no-one would be prepared to pay for. The Giro is not the Tour and doesn’t command the same interest or attract the same “elite” (those willing to pay to be a part of something they consider has ego boosting potential). Roadside viewing will always largely remain free for everyone outside circuits. Introduction of a symbolic entrance to mountain climbs is worthy of exploration. Asking 1-2€ isn’t going to repulse real fans (most will spend 50-100€ on their outing that day all things included) but will prevent a portion of the total knobhead thrillseekers who will join in any large gathering as long as it’s free, just because they’re attracted to crowds, without which it it difficult for them to work up their anti-social behaviour.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- How is radio going to help when someone went over a cliff or bridge or off the roadside into a forest unnoticed and is laying there unconscious?Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- Yep, next we’ll be accusing F1 drivers of avoiding Le Mans.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- But on what is that opinion based? Are you holding him to a different standard than others? Are you saying he should do learn to like something he doesn’t Are you saying he hasn’t achieved enough Are you saying he pretends to be better than his results? It’s actually a really strange opinion to oust if you consider it objectively or rationally. Try applying it to others or yourself by asking if not EVERYONE should then be doing more? Nobody in athletics or swimming gets criticism for not expanding their repertoire when a rival or someone else does. In fact, most who move to another event get accused of running from their rival. Opinions are boring, the reasons behind them are what count.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- for a medical chief to throw things like is just bad. There are already radios which were banned for spectacle. allow radios. Gps trackers are not a complete solutionabstractengineer07-11-2026
- Yeah man...PogiSloFans07-11-2026
- any rider less than 25 whether they are really ready for the position of leadership of GT is probably not the case. I think Pogi himself suffered when he was defeated by Jonas in the TDF twice. But that would be the team's job to ensure support so that they can bounce back. It requires a team and time to get back up and win after getting knocked down.abstractengineer07-11-2026
- I'm very glad he got the big late Quickstep Vuelta win and I hope he has a few left for Euskaltel-Euskadi.flyer07-11-2026
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