Van der Haar cannot deliver final blow to Iserbyt in the X2O trophy classifications due to the difference with Van der Poel: "That's messed up, isn't it"?

Lars van der Haar finished impressively in fourth place on Monday in the New Year's cyclo-cross race of Baal, thereby further strengthening his lead in the battle for the X2O Trophy standings. His great rival Eli Iserbyt decided to skip the cyclo-cross races in Baal and Koksijde after the race in Hulst, but he didn’t really hurt his chances too much by doing so.

After the race, IDLProCycling.com caught up with Van der Haar at his camper. He was asked what went through his mind when Pauwels Sauzen-Bingoal announced that Iserbyt would skip two X2O races, knowing that the difference was only nine seconds and that third-placed Cameron Mason usually settles for that position. "Nothing. I just thought: too bad, get well soon for him. People who say that I have practically won the X2O Trophy are getting way ahead of themselves," the Dutchman clearly states.

"There are still four races left, so everything can still turn around. It's looking good now, but Cameron is still in a good position, and what about Eli actually losing almost no time here?" Van der Haar wonders aloud. That has a clear reason: Mathieu van der Poel. If you skip a race in the X2O Trophy, you lose - as Iserbyt did now - five minutes on the winner in the standings. But the difference between Van der Poel and the rest is so large that the Dutchman puts men like Van der Haar and Mason behind by three to four minutes. In other words: Iserbyt won't lose more than 1.29 minutes to his competitor in Baal.

Van der Haar on X2O general classification: "That's pretty messed up, isn't it?'

"With Mathieu riding around like that, Eli only loses a minute and a half. Against some guys, he loses just a few seconds. Eli is still ahead of Cameron, can you believe it? That's pretty messed up, it's the opposite of what it should be," Van der Haar asserts. Mason later supported him on social media that evening, with a telling emoji.

Before the World Championships in Tábor, the UCI will present the new cyclo-cross plans for next winter, after criticism had already been voiced from various quarters. "I'm very curious about the plans they will present, but I'm not going to worry about it anymore. I've done that for so long and in the end, they do what's best for themselves, so I'm not going to lose sleep over it. That's for the newer generation," says Van der Haar.

Nevertheless, the Dutch champion rode a good cyclo-cross in Baal. "I really had good legs, but I slowly started to fade due to all the running. Take Mathieu out of the equation and it becomes an exciting cross. Then I finish within a minute of Wout, but now one guy stands out above all the rest. If Mathieu leads by two or three minutes again in Koksijde, then Eli is in a great position and can easily make the podium in the X2O," concludes Van der Haar.