Nieuwenhuis (fifth) didn't know what to expect with Mathieu and Wout: "It means the racing is different"

Joris Nieuwenhuis finished in fifth place at the World Cup in Antwerp on Saturday, meeting expectations. The 27-year-old rider belonging to the Baloise Trek Lions team was satisfied with his race afterwards. The Dutchman reacted through a video on Instagram.

"I didn't know what to expect with Wout van Aert and Mathieu van der Poel participating in this race," says Nieuwenhuis, as he works his legs on the rollers. "And by that, I mean how the race unfolds, because it just means the racing is different. In the first two rounds, I managed to stay at the front, but when Mathieu took off, no one could follow. After that, it was a matter of riding my own race, because there was the danger that if you went over your limit, you would fall far back, as the field was so close together."

The battle for the remaining podium places was between Iserbyt, Nieuwenhuis, Van Aert and Laurens Sweeck. With two rounds to go, Iserbyt launched a strong attack. While Van Aert was able to follow his compatriot, Sweeck and Nieuwenhuis fell back. Eventually, Van Aert took second place by breaking away from Iserbyt in a strong final round. "In the end, I had to let Eli go, partly because of the point on the course where I always fell back. But it was nice and I'm satisfied with my race."

View Nieuwenhuis' reaction in Antwerp here.