Niels Albert: "I think Wout van Aert has already accepted Mathieu van der Poel's supremacy"

Although Fem van Empel's dominant cyclocross winning streak came to an end on Boxing Day, Mathieu van der Poel's impressive run shows no signs of stopping anytime soon.

According to cyclocross legend Niels Albert, the competitivity of the sport may be well and truly done. "We have been looking forward to races between The Big Three this winter. Perhaps we have taken our wishes for reality," Albert tells Het Laatste Nieuws. "Tom Pidcock may still be able to make a difference in Diegem, but as for Wout Van Aert: I think he has already accepted Mathieu's supremacy. Wout has fewer ambitions and his condition is simply less good."

Dutch national coach on Mathieu van der Poel: "I would understand it if he skipped a year. That boy can't do anything low profile, there's a camera on everything he does"

Although Lars Boom also admits to van der Poel's supremacy over the current cyclocross field, he has a more realistic look at the rivalry between the 'Big Three'. "I indeed saw in Antwerp how impressive Mathieu already was. And I heard about Mol that he rode with the handbrake on," explains Boom.

"I don't know where Wout stands conditionally," continues Boom, however he sees the Belgian having bigger targets this year. "In the end, I think he would rather beat Van der Poel in Flanders than beat him here in the cyclocross."