"I'm still lacking the final punch to win" - Mathieu van der Poel has good sensations ahead of MTB World Championships after Les Gets podium
Mountain BikeSunday, 23 August 2026 at 23:00
Mathieu van der Poel's rehearsal for mountain bike World Championships scheduled for next week in Val di Sole has been a success. Even though the Dutchman failed to raise his hands at the finish line of XCO race in Les Gets, the second place behind Adrien Boichis is a great signal for next Sunday when Van der Poel hopes to complete his rainbow jersey collection.
The scene is set
For the 31-year-old, it's been a return to mountain bike after almost a year. His last start was at the World Championship XCO in Crans-Montana last September. Back then, his attempt did not work out and Van der Poel crossed finish line defeated, in 29th position.
Read also
But now the signals are even better than last year. And so, Van der Poel could be all smiles at the finish line despite not winning:
"It was really great to be competing at the front of the race again," he reflected on his performance on the mountain bike. "It had been quite a while. It really makes a big difference when you can start from the second row. I was immediately in the leading group."
Lacking the kick
With one week left, no drastic improvements to his condition can be made, even though Van der Poel is well-aware of the areas that could use some work.
"I really enjoyed it," Van der Poel continues. "But I am currently still lacking the final punch to be able to win, but I am happy with this performance. I know the level is incredibly high. I wanted to be the first to start the final technical section, but he (referring to Bochis, ed.) was just a little too strong, so I couldn't pass him anymore. I was definitely at my limit then."
Mathieu van der Poel during 2025 Nove Mesto World Cup XCO race
While the organizers in Les Gets went out of their way to put Van der Poel in a favorable starting position for both short-track and cross-country races, his cards will be much worse at the World Championships where no special treatment awaits the Dutch phenomenon.
"This is a nice result, but I also rode a strong race in Les Gets last year, but then wasn't good at the World Championships. Your starting position is very important and I have to start from the fifth row again. So I need a bit of luck," he concludes.
Ondrej ZhasilCycling Journalist
Ondřej Zhasil is a cycling journalist at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2023. He is based in Ostrava, the third-largest city in the Czech Republic, and covers professional cycling across the main UCI competitions, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España. A key focus of his work is startlist analysis and pre-race coverage, where he examines team selections, rider line-ups, and tactical scenarios ahead of major events.
Alongside WorldTour coverage, Ondřej has developed specific expertise in junior cycling and in racing across East Asia, including competitions in China and Japan. He also maintains a broad working knowledge of other disciplines and levels, including cyclocross, while continuing to expand his understanding of mountain bike racing.
Ondřej holds a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and Physics, which supports his analytical, data-driven approach to performance and race analysis. In his reporting, he regularly uses ProCyclingStats for results, statistics, and historical context. He places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles promptly when new, verified information becomes available.
claps 0visitors 0
Just in
Popular news
Latest comments
- In Pogačar time, 2022 and 2023 are eons ago. What he’s done since then is to move from pizza to nutrition, rim brakes to disk, and on and on. For someone so lighthearted, he’s competitive as hell. What will he do when he defeats cycling? Is there value in doing it again? Hinault won Paris Roubaix and said never again, Pogačare won MSR and started to focus on the next impossible challenge. Give him an impossible course and he will go for it. Give him something familiar and he will end up bored.RidesHills23-08-2026
- correct, dead of winter for the cx season. and their coverage of cyclocross increases SIGNIFICANTLY when mathieu and wout start their cx seasons. if you love mtb then it’s really a GOOD thing that van der poel and pidcock pull some attention to it on sites like this, isn’t it?OCexile23-08-2026
- Not a great look for JV - sure seems like if the ASO “tailor made” the course for JV, he’d still get spanked by PogCrashjames23-08-2026
- Lol that's the best clickbait cyclinguptodate have put on here for some time. Like a moth to a flame....Cyclingsbestfan23-08-2026
- It may be better suited to vingegaard that explosive stages, but it doesn't mean better for him than pogacar. Tadej has been there better climber since 2024, and the 2 stages he "cracked" both had other circumstances. Stage 17, 2023, Tadej was dropped not by vingegaard, but by a group of 8 led by ineos, uncharacteristically 7 miles from the summit, after he fell hard early that stage, long after adrenaline wears off. Stage 11, 2022, Tadej famously was isolated by 5 jumbo riders, and unwisely chased countless attacks in the valley by roglic and jonas before getting dropped on final mountain, by jonas and Geraint, and many argue he bonked. It would be different if Jonas simply rode him of the wheel on long step climbs 1 on1, but that has rarely ever happened.typurc23-08-2026
- They also give the results of all the CX races... but only as there are no road races then
Rafionain-Glas23-08-2026 - good luck to your guy at Worlds next week!OCexile23-08-2026
- Winning MSR, flanders x3, 2 wc, and 2x 2nd at roubaix, I is obvious that if the course doesn't suit Tadej, he just changes how it is raced. This also isn't 2022 where Jumbo has 5 to climbers and Tadej's only support was Marc Soler.typurc23-08-2026
- i get it. but bear in mind that cyclinguptodate is fundamentally a ROAD RACING site. it more or less ONLY covers mtb when either pidcock or van der poel are racing. same with gravel. but i’m sure there are mountain bike sites that will give your guy from red bull his due for the big win today.OCexile23-08-2026
- its getting out of hand i gotte agree.miguel23-08-2026
Loading
Write a comment