Mathieu van der Poel: "I would have preferred to have beaten him without that puncture"

Mathieu van der Poel has added X2O Trofee Herentals to his list of achievements. The Dutchman beat Wout van Aert in the final lap and registered his fourth win of the season.

As the race was coming to an end, both competitors were neck and neck, and neither was able to gain an advantage. However, Van Aert experienced a flat tire which ultimately allowed Van der Poel to win the race.

"I decided not to cheer exuberantly at the finish, as I would have preferred to have beaten him without that puncture. The plan was to dive into the technical zone first, but just before that, Wout had a puncture. It's a shame he couldn't defend his chances,” said van der Poel in the post-race interview.

The Dutchman anticipated that the race would end in a final sprint between him and Van Aert, and therefore employed a strategy to conserve energy. However, fate had other plans. "I rode differently today than the past crosses. Namely, I wanted to have something left for the last lap. We were matched again today,” concluded van der Poel.