"Started making stupid mistakes" - Lucinda Brand sees room for improvement despite easing to Rapencross Lokeren victory

Lucinda Brand is still yet to finish off the podium this winter. After taking victory at Rapencross Lokeren on Sunday afternoon, the Dutch national champion now has three wins in her seven outings this cyclocross campaign.

Despite the relative comfort of her victory ahead of Ceylin del Carmen Alvarado and Sara Casasola, Brand wasn't completely content with her own performance. “I wanted to balance between riding as fast as possible to the finish, but not going to the limit because we are also riding in Niel tomorrow,” she explained in her post-race interview afterwards. “But I did want to gain seconds. That’s why I lost a bit of concentration and started making stupid mistakes. That’s something I have to be critical of.”

As mentioned, Alvarado came home in second place, with the Dutchwoman hampered by some early mechanical issues. Although Brand benefitted from this, she insists it wasn't on her mind during the race. "I had to try to make it hard. It was difficult to follow here, because you have a 'dead spot' in the wheel. That's why it's better to be at the front," says Brand. "I saw that Ceylin had problems with her chain, so I knew that. After that she rode a strong race, although I didn't know if she was still holding back with a view to tomorrow. But I think she rode a strong race."

With Fem van Empel absent from round 2 of the X2O Badkamers Trofee, Brand also now moves into the overall lead of the standings. “You always want to win. It’s great to win and gain a lead in the X2O Trofee rankings,” she concludes.