Puck Pieterse was unable to defend Dutch title against phenomenal Lucinda Brand: "You could see that she had a bit more power

Puck Pieterse was satisfied with a second place at Dutch cyclocross Championships. Although she failed to defend her title, there was nothing she could have done about Lucinda Brand, she told WielerFlits afterwards.

"It wasn't my best race," Pieterse admits. "I had a good start and rode where I wanted to, but Lucinda was a bit faster today. You could see that she had a bit more power, especially on the straights. You always have to have confidence, but I don't think I came into the race in my best shape."

"This doesn't necessarily change anything in my preparation for the World Championships. I guess I just have to have confidence in how things are going now. It wasn't a bad race, was it? A championship is always a special competition. I'm now going to train in Spain. I will take some rest in the coming days and then I will fully dive into it again."