Tactical planning not necessary for Mathieu van der Poel ahead of CX World Championship according to Dutch coach: "When he is good, he just steps on the gas"

Mathieu van der Poel is undoubtedly the dominant force in cyclocross. In fact, Van der Poel has only failed to win one of his last 24 cyclocross races dating back to the 2022/2023 season. As such the Dutchman will start as favourite to win the 2025 Cyclocross World Championships next weekend.

According to Dutch national coach Gerben de Knegt, Van der Poel is so good that a tactical plan or an extensive briefing pre-race just simply isn't required. "You can talk to him about tactics, but I know from experience that that is usually not necessary at all," De Knegt explains in conversation with Wielerflits. "If you look at Mathieu's races, you know: when he is good, he just steps on the gas. I expect a tough circuit in Liévin and then that is also the best possible tactic."

And so, De Knegt has some pretty simple advice for his rider to follow. "Accelerate. Get as big a lead as possible as quickly as possible," he says. "If you have something happen to your bike, you can allow yourself something. I assume he will do it that way again."

That's not to say De Knegt sees Van der Poel as unbeatable though. "Actually, he can only lose. And then there is that all-time victory record. I think there is something secretly wrong with him. If that were to happen, it would be great," the coach previews. "I looked up the weather forecast for this weekend and saw how dirty it is there. "I assume it will be a pretty tough cross in one tempo. Then the strongest will normally win."

Also, the Dutch coach is at pain to point out that Van der Poel isn't his nation's only rider capable of a podium in Lievin next weekend. "Last year we already had a very nice second place with Joris Nieuwenhuis," De Knegt concludes. "With Lars van der Haar and Pim Ronhaar we have more guys who can ride themselves onto the podium."