"The mud doesn’t bother me" - Felipe Orts comes close to major win; beats Iserbyt, van der Haar and Vanthourenhout in Niel

Felipe Orts is a rider that has been continuously growing within the cyclocross world, and is an interesting figure coming from a 'non-traditional' cyclocross nation. He continues to put his foot down as one of the leading figures currently and came close to beating the whole field at the Jaarmarktcross Niel this Monday, coming second only to a Laurens Sweeck who thrived in the mud.

“I am extremely satisfied with my race and the result I achieved. At the end of the cross I still had some energy left to go into the final, with Niels Vandeputte and Eli Iserbyt”, Orts shared with Het Nieuwsblad following the race. “It was difficult in the final phase, but fortunately I still managed to come second. I had divided my race well. The circuit was tough. Anyone who went into the red quite early here was disappointed.”

Orts comes from a second place in the Pontevedra European Championships where he put in a massive display, being the closest rider to a Thibau Nys who seems to have finally found consistency. Whilst he usually performs very well in the fast courses, he admits that it's in the mud that he feels at his best. In the third round of the Superprestige Cup, he felt at home and beat most of the discipline's best - finishing directly ahead of Niels Vandeputte, Eli Iserbyt, Lars van der Haar and Michael Vanthourenhout.

“I just have a good feeling on a muddy circuit. The mud doesn’t bother me. I also don’t mind racing in the rain. That is all part of cyclo-cross," he concluded.

The 29-year old's strong performance sees him climb to fourth in the cup rankings and be in the fight for the win after three rounds out of eight. Former leader Joran Wyseure struggled and scored only 2 points - Niels Vandeputte, who was tied, climbed to the lead after finishing third. The Belgian has 39 points, Lars van der Haar has 36, Michael Vanthourenhout has 33 and Orts is now fourth with 29 points in the tally. Eli Iserbyt, after missing out on the first round due to suspension, follows closely in sixth place with 26 points.