Rivalry with Wout van Aert "will be something special to look back to" - Mathieu van der Poel
Cyclocross
Mathieu van der Poel has ended his cyclocross season with a bang, taking a massive fifth World title in Hoogerheide as he beat Wout van Aert in a very tight battle. The two have pointed everything towards this race, and they both threw everything they could in what was another battle in a long-term rivalry.
Van der Poel's flash interview declarations were enough to prove his happiness and satisfaction over the triumph, however over the afternoon he's talked to the media more and revealed more insight: “I think if you take one of us two away, then it makes the races less interesting for sure. It was a good battle against Wout who is really hard to beat, so I’m happy," Cyclingnews tells.
Alongside Tom Pidcock, Mathieu van der Poel and Wout van Aert have brought in a big amount of fans from road cycling where they have been thriving over the last few years, and the expected battle in the men's Elite race at the cyclocross World Championships came to be as immediately on the first lap van der Poel and van Aert stood out from the rest.
It is a rivalry as old as their competitive record, and he talks of this relationship with van Aert. “It’s better already for a couple of years of cyclocross and the road, there is always respect between us. Maybe you don’t appreciate it sometimes when you get beaten but after our career it will be something special to look back on," he said.
Van der Poel suffered from back problems and seemed to be below Wout van Aert in the crucial Christmas block, but has taken the last month of preparation to prepare as best as possible for a track that suited him perfectly, where the fast speeds and lack of running and slow sections favoured him.
“Everybody said during the Christmas period that Wout was stronger than I was. The moment I left for Spain I tried to turn a switch on and focus on this race. I needed two or three weeks to really work on it [back], get some treatment and do a lot of exercise," van der Poel describes. “It was quiet for me, rather than being on my bike or doing some other training I was in the gym almost every day which was necessary."
Despite having taken this win, van der Poel isn't expected to compete in his new rainbow jersey until the next winter. In the meantime he will take some rest before beginning the road-specific preparation for the spring classics where he has taken a big wins last year.
“That’s always the case for every rider as it’s only five or six races so we try to be the best we can. It’s really nice to become world champion but it isn’t anything to do with the road season. You start again from zero and I’m going to try and do some nice races in the road season," he concluded.
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Rúben SilvaEditor-in-Chief
A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
Beyond editorial work, he has been closely involved in the expansion and coordination of CyclingUpToDate’s wider network, helping establish and support sister platforms across multiple languages. This includes ongoing collaboration with CiclismoAlDia (Spanish), CiclismoAtual (Portuguese), WielrennenUpToDate (Dutch), and RadsportAktuell (German), contributing to a shared editorial vision and consistent international coverage.
He also helps oversee editorial governance across the network, setting standards for accuracy and consistency and coordinating updates or corrections when needed.
Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
Within 18 months of launch, he helped grow CyclingUpToDate’s English-language platform into one of the most-read cycling news websites, built entirely from the ground up. As both a professional journalist and lifelong cycling enthusiast, his focus remains on delivering accurate, timely, and well-contextualized coverage.
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- He is boring
leedorney08-11-2026 - To Twoje przemyślenia te bla, bla :)
Dariusz08-11-2026 - Uwielbiam patrzeć, jak wyjeżdża na czoło peletonu i zaczyna się rzeź...Dariusz08-11-2026
- Yeah, unreal.
parisbound0008-11-2026 - there needs to be space in life for pointless comments!Ketterechts08-11-2026
- That is a very lazy way of putting it but so far on this website it seems like everyone is happy to look at everything lazily, even things that annoy them intensely. All they want to do is state their feeling and position but ask most to analyse a problem or come up with solutions or improvements and you’re stunned by silence. Nobody even really knows how this all happens. It’s very simple and quick to just say the UCI did it but I bet you they didn’t, I bet you not more than 2 people were involved, more likely just 1. The UCI may be ultimately responsible but it is not their decision, this is about hierarchy, power and delegation. The fact that protest is possible also means it isn’t over and that MORE people could get involved for a thorough review which could throw up anything. It is highly likely it was a sole commissar who decided and has that power in a first round. Therein might lie the problem the UCI has to consider, is it acceptable to give so much authority to one single person when it is quite possible for them to have a natural bias or be too easily susceptible to imposed bias. Who is to say an individual in this position isn’t susceptible to collaboration with outside players with interests in the results, nations, families, teams, betting companies, etc. On the one hand we have sports where these problems have been worked on way more to reduce such problems, on the other hand we have sports with far stricter and more draconian rules not even concerning safety or obstruction that nobody really questions like false starts or stepping out of lane or zones in athletics. If cycling hastowork on itself, it would be good if protagonists (all kinds) would start doing a little more than just moaning over outcomes.Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- Yes, so why not make comments less pointless?Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- What a race! I didn't expect Vanthourenhout to collapse like that, and Wyseure did take the fight to Nys, but there was no doubt at the end. I also wonder what Aubin Sparfel would be capable of were he to race in the elites now. In the U23 ranks he is making good work of Giel Lejeune, who himself is among the better riders in the elites, and a top 10 contender in the big races (3rd at Kleebergcross, 8th at Berencross and 5th at Heerderstrand). In the French Cup, Sparfel is significantly better than Romain Debord (8th at Koppenbergcross and 10th at the Euros) and Rémi Lelandais (12th at Koppenbergcross and 19th at the Euros).
Rafionain-Glas08-11-2026 - There really was nothing in it. Schreiber was so much faster, and Brand was fighting to stay in the wheel in the sprint. Schreiber did move a bit, but to say she closed the door doesn't make sense because Brand couldn't enter it anyway, abd she wasn't impeded.Rafionain-Glas08-11-2026
- He should have been allowed to go to Movistar. Right now both arent a good fit for each other and are just wasting each other's time and effortabstractengineer08-11-2026
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This crowd. 🤯 Thank you, Hoogerheide. 🙌 #Hoogerheide2023
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