Results Superprestige Merksplas 2025 | Joris Nieuwenhuis overcomes early setbacks to take dominant victory

Joris Nieuwenhuis produced one of the most assured performances of his cyclocross season, recovering from a crash and mechanical before riding away from an elite lead group to win Superprestige Merksplas in convincing fashion. Once the Dutchman hit the front in the closing laps, no one came close to matching his speed through the sand or his composure on the technical sectors.

Niels Vandeputte and Emiel Verstrynge completed the podium after a hard-fought battle behind, while Belgian champion Thibau Nys saw his challenge fade in the final lap.

Danny van Lierop launched fastest off the line, stringing the field out through the opening passages, with Ronhaar, Wyseure, Vandeputte and Nys all well-positioned. Further back, European champion Toon Aerts endured a difficult opening lap, sitting outside the top twenty, while Vanthourenhout also struggled to move forward.

As the race settled, a group featuring Nys, Ronhaar, Michels and Nieuwenhuis took shape, with Vandeputte also riding strongly. But a first setback struck for Nieuwenhuis when he slid out in a corner and briefly lost contact, followed soon after by a chain issue that forced him off the bike and dropped him to around twenty seconds down.

The leading pack remained fluid, with Mason, Michels, Verstrynge and Nys all taking turns as small gaps formed and closed. Behind them, Ronhaar, Orts, Vandebosch and Van der Haar hovered just off the back of the move. Bit by bit, Nieuwenhuis clawed his way forward, eventually making the junction with the leaders in the fifth lap.

With the race still wide open, Verstrynge pushed the tempo, but he was closely marked by Nys, Michels, Vandeputte and Mason. The sand sector continued to play a decisive role: Vandeputte made notable gains there, while Nys repeatedly lost small amounts of time that he then had to recover.

Inside the final three laps, the key moment arrived. Nieuwenhuis hit the front and immediately stretched the elastic, opening a small but growing gap as Verstrynge fought to stay on terms. Nys, meanwhile, drifted backwards after another difficult sand passage. The pressure told on the chasers, and Nieuwenhuis powered clear with increasingly dominant sections through the sand and on the climbs.

With two laps remaining, the gap had grown to twelve seconds, and Nieuwenhuis was already cresting the next rise as Verstrynge, Vandeputte and Michels reached the preceding slope. Nys followed at sixteen seconds and never regained contact.

On the final lap, Vandeputte delivered a strong sand passage to secure second place, while Nieuwenhuis rode flawlessly to the line. A tired Nys slipped to seventh, just ahead of Vanthourenhout, with Sweeck further back after a difficult afternoon.