Criticism after criticism after criticism for Wout van Aert—now also from Boonen: “I would’ve never taken that risk”

Wout van Aert kicks things off again Friday at the E3 Saxo Classic, and the Belgian from Visma | Lease a Bike will be fired up. In the past, after winning the E3, he famously declared, “I don’t owe anyone anything,” following a storm of criticism aimed at his classics campaign. Will we see a similar scenario this Friday? The criticism has already been harsh, following some bold choices made by the star rider.

Van Aert started his season at the Clásica Jaén and then rode the Tour of the Algarve. He appeared in Omloop Het Nieuwsblad and Kuurne–Brussels–Kuurne, but then headed to altitude training in Tenerife. This meant skipping popular races like Strade Bianche and Milan–San Remo. Gent–Wevelgem is also off the schedule. Visma | Lease a Bike and Van Aert are going all-in on the Tour of Flanders and Paris–Roubaix, using the E3 and Dwars door Vlaanderen as key prep races.

That hasn’t sat well with some big names in the cycling world. In Italy, there was obvious disappointment that WVA didn’t show up at their races. Michele Bartoli, speaking to La Gazzetta dello Sport after Milan–San Remo, gave his opinion on what he saw—and what he didn’t. Mathieu van der Poel and Tadej Pogacar stood head and shoulders above the rest in La Primavera, according to the former Tour of Flanders winner. He praised his compatriot Filippo Ganna, but added: “Van der Poel and especially Pogacar remain the top favorites. Whenever Pogacar lines up, he’s always the one to beat.”

The Italian questions whether Van Aert still belongs among the flying duo “Besides Ganna, Van Aert is the only one who could still win. I still hold out hope,” said the now 54-year-old Michele Bartoli, a former double winner of both the Tour of Lombardy and Liège–Bastogne–Liège. “But when people expect something from him, he doesn’t deliver. I also wonder why he didn’t ride Milan–San Remo. He says he’s training, but he needs to measure himself against the others in real races.”

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Even in Belgium questions arise why Van Aert skipped so many races

Bartoli’s comments echo those of Michel Wuyts, who earlier raised doubts about his fellow countryman’s decisions. “Have you looked at his results in San Remo? Three podiums, one win, two third places, and the other times he finished in the top ten. What more could you want? Just show up again, right? Especially knowing it might be the race that suits him best. He can make a move on the Poggio, and if he survives in a small group, he can finish it off in a sprint on the Via Roma. So why stay away?”

HLN analyst Jan Bakelants also had criticism, particularly because he believes a Van Aert coming straight from altitude camp now has to race an already race-hardened Van der Poel in the E3. “I wouldn’t want to be in his shoes right now. That registered letter landed hard on the doormat in Tenerife—and he had to acknowledge it. Okay, if you don’t race, you can’t change anything. But after that performance, I can imagine that returning to competition against these guys, this Friday in the E3 Saxo Classic, doesn’t seem like a fun prospect.”

And it didn’t stop there. On Wednesday, Van Aert was also criticized in the podcast Wielerclub Wattage, by none other than Tom Boonen. “Unbelievable. I would never have taken the risk of skipping Milan–San Remo. You don’t have to go there aiming for a result. But it’s always valuable to be in the chaos of that race and find your way through the bunch.” According to Boonen, Van Aert would’ve benefited from that experience ahead of the E3. “Harelbeke is technically the toughest race of the spring. There are so many ultra-narrow roads where you have to fight for position 150 times.”

“The E3 is Wout’s first race in four weeks. He’ll need time to find his rhythm,” said Boonen.

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