John Degenkolb: "I think Wout van Aert will become world champion"

Cyclocross is king this week, and not even in the road races was it possible to avoid the question that has been asked the most this week: Will it be Wout van Aert or Mathieu van der Poel taking the world title this weekend at the World Championships?

"It's fascinating how good they are throughout the year," Degenkolb said in an interview with John Degenkolb. "They have an incredibly intensive program and still manage to be in shape everywhere. It's frightening to see how deep they go in the winter and still be so good in the spring. Sometimes you get the feeling that they don't need any rest at all to perform. It's bizarre and great for cycling.'

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The two will go head-to-head this afternoon and are the large favourites to take the win, seeing as Tom Pidcock is absent and over the past month and a half the duo has been dominating the main races in the field.

When asked to make a prediction for today's race, Degenkolb responded: "Let's hope it will be a duel until the last round. It's always nice to see their duels. The fans seem to love the rivalry too. I think Wout van Aert will become world champion.'"

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The German has just completed the Saudi Tour, where he began another season with Team DSM. "As a team we would like to race together and experience beautiful moments," Degenkolb continued.

"There is no specific race where we want to prove ourselves. It's more about functioning as a team and being present in finals. That is realistic for us. I myself have a contract until the end of 2024 and then we'll see. I'll make a choice by then," he concluded.

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Mathieu van der Poel will not ride World Championship track the days before the race: “He handles it like he does at a normal cross. He may do a few laps on Sunday morning.”