Results Urban Cross Kortrijk | Cameron Mason denied victory again as Niels Vandeputte edges thrilling battle

Victory for Niels Vandeputte in a beautiful Urban Cross Kortrijk that delivered a show on Belgian soil in another round of the prestigious Exact Cross, ahead of the return of the Cyclocross World Cup and Mathieu van der Poel this Sunday in Namur. He finished ahead of Cameron Mason after a great battle. Ryan Kamp took bronze.

At the start, the strongest was the Briton Cameron Mason, who took the lead of the race, showcasing his great form. He completed the lap with a 3-second gap over the chasing group led by Michael Vantourenhout ahead of Niels Vandeputte, Ryan Kamp, Yorben Lauryssen, and another Briton, Mein.

After seeing he couldn’t get away from the group, Mason eased off and a leading quintet formed, consolidated on the second lap with Mason, Vantourenhout, Vandeputte, Kamp, and Lauryssen. The pace slowed in laps 3 and 4 of the race and the lead group became much larger, with more than a dozen riders at the front of the race.

Thus, on the fifth lap Kamp passed ahead of Vanthourenhout, Ferdinande, Vandeputte, Lauryssen, and Vandenberghe. The Britons Mein and Mason lost a few seconds to the leaders. One lap later, Mason managed to rejoin the front group, which a motivated Lauryssen was trying to split. There were 3 laps to go and everything to be decided.

With 2 laps to go, Vantourenhout gained a few meters on Vandeputte and Mason. The pace quickened at an always crucial moment of the race with only the final section left to cover. At the penultimate lap, Lauryssen, Mason, Vanthourenhout, Kamp, Vandeputte, and Ferdinande arrived together. The victory would be decided among them.

The big favorite, Michael Vanthourenhout, had a wheel clash with Kamp that took him out of contention for the win. In that eighth and penultimate lap, Cameron Mason attacked again. The Briton opened up a few important meters.

In the final part of the last lap it was clear the win would be fought between Mason and Vandeputte. The Briton was driving hard. Kamp had dropped a few meters that seemed definitive. Vandeputte moved to the front on the last pass over the bridge, preventing Mason from getting away in the tight turns that suited the Brit so well. The Alpecin rider opened the gap on the British champion. Those meters were enough: victory for Vandeputte ahead of Mason and Kamp.