Van Aert heads into the Ardennes still bruised from Roubaix: "It’s not just the road rash on the knee"

After a disappointing run through the cobbled classics, Wout van Aert has shifted focus to the Ardennes. The Visma Lease a Bike rider is looking to salvage his spring campaign with a strong showing on the punchier terrain, but it won’t be easy. Not only is the competition stacked, the 30 year old cyclocross star is still feeling the effects of last week’s crash and he didn’t come out of it entirely unscathed.

There were plenty of question marks surrounding Wout van Aert heading into the Tour of Flanders. Up until that point, his form hadn’t looked sharp enough to fight for the win, but he surprised many with a strong ride in Flanders' Finest. He finished fourth and lined up for Paris Roubaix with renewed confidence. Expectations were higher there, but the result was the same. Another fourth place, although Van Aert’s chances were already over with 80 kilometers to go.

A crash in the early part of the race certainly did not help. The Belgian hit the deck and reopened a gash on his already banged up left knee. Afterward Van Aert tried to downplay the damage. “I don’t know if it will still bother me. I don’t think so. During the race I didn’t feel anything,” said the rider who finished fourth in the Hell of the North. Words that sounded hopeful at the time but are now being walked back a little.

Team director Arthur van Dongen has confirmed that Van Aert is still dealing with more than just surface wounds. “It wasn’t only the road rash on his knee,” he told Het Laatste Nieuws. "He has a few other issues too, but I am not going to get into that. That’s for Wout to explain. What matters is that he is fit enough to race and he’s motivated. That’s the most important thing.” As for whether more should be expected from teammate Tiesj Benoot, Van Dongen made it clear there is no defined hierarchy within the team.

Speaking to Sporza, Van Aert admitted the aftermath of his crash lingered longer than expected. “It did bother me a bit, maybe more than I thought it would,” he said. “It took a few days before I started feeling okay again, but now I have recovered well.” A more measured tone from the rider himself, who insists he is back on track. His focus now shifts to the Brabantse Pijl.“It is going to be an explosive race today with the short distance and short climbs. There are always a lot of attacks here, it is usually pretty chaotic, but the time gaps tend to stay small.”