Whether it’s a "Van Aert course" or not, Van der Poel doesn’t care: "That’s something from five or six years ago"

Number seven! Mathieu van der Poel claimed his seventh cyclo-cross world title in Liévin. The Alpecin-Deceuninck rider led the race from the very start, crossing the finish line with a massive lead. With this victory, he equaled Erik De Vlaeminck as the most successful World Championship cyclo-cross rider of all time. Confident beforehand and overjoyed afterward, Van der Poel couldn’t hide his excitement.

"It’s still a bit frozen for now, but that should clear up," Van der Poel told VTM around midday after his course recon. "We saw the same thing on Saturday, so I think we’ll get similar conditions to the elite women’s race," he said, referring to the thrilling battle between Fem van Empel and Lucinda Brand the day before.

There were no questions about his broken rib, but Van der Poel mentioned that after back-to-back wins in Maasmechelen and Hoogerheide, he’d had a solid week. "I feel ready. It’s a fun and fair course—challenging, but still very rideable, with technical sections where you can make a difference."

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Van der Poel arrives at the press tent after the course recon

Van der Poel not expecting early solo at World Championships

With the defending champion arriving in Liévin after winning all seven of his races this season, the big question was: will it be close? Van der Poel laughed it off. "There will always be competition. I'm not someone who plans race scenarios in advance—I just wait and see how the race unfolds. It doesn’t have to happen in the first lap. Am I thinking about a seventh title? Not really. I'm just focused on becoming world champion again. That’s the main goal, and we’ll see if I can pull it off."

Speaking to NOS, Van der Poel emphasized that nothing was guaranteed. "If it were that easy, I’d already be walking to the podium. But this is a new day, a new race, and a very technical course. A mistake is always lurking, so I’m focused and as prepared as possible for this World Championship. Hopefully, I’m in top form today. Yes, I feel relaxed—I guess that comes with age."

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Still an early attack: "We saw it yesterday already"

Despite his earlier remarks, Van der Poel did go solo in the very first lap. "We saw it yesterday already in the U23 race, where my teammate Del Grosso won—it’s best to take the lead early and ride your own race," the world champion explained in his flash interview. "Especially on this course—it was really tough, even just clipping into the pedals was tricky. Riding in a group would have been even worse. I had a good start and felt strong, so I immediately tried to open a big gap to discourage the chasers—and it worked."

His fast start turned out to be crucial for how the race unfolded. "Of course I was fast on the first meters, although Toon Aerts passed me early on. But I knew I had to be in the first positions. Once you open a gap early, it gives you wings for the rest of the race." After just three minutes, the 30-year-old superstar had already broken away, and his rivals never saw him again.

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Wout van Aert finishes a distant second

Stones in his shoes and fear of punctures

It wasn’t just a cruise to the finish for Van der Poel. "I was afraid of a flat tire or a mechanical issue," he admitted. That fear became a reality in lap three. "After the first pit zone, I had to ride for a long time with a flat front tire. It cost me some energy. I immediately asked for higher tire pressure as a precaution. From that point on, I just had to be careful."

With this victory, Van der Poel matches Erik De Vlaeminck with seven world titles. "It means a lot—it’s history. This record has stood for a very long time. When you start racing at the elite level, you hope to win one world title, but seven? You don’t even dare to dream of that, so this is very special." Next year, he has the chance to hold the record outright if he wins his eighth title on home soil. "We’ll see," he laughed. "For now, I’m just going to enjoy this one."

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Van der Poel on the Podium with Wout van Aert (Left) and Thibau Nys

Could the Belgians have made it harder for Van der Poel?

While Van der Poel was the only Dutch rider at the front in the opening phase, things were different for the Belgians. Several shadow favorites sat behind Van der Poel in a group of five or six, but as the race progressed, they struggled to keep up with the pace. Could the Belgians have done things differently? IDLProCycling.com asked the world champion. "No, I don’t think so," Van der Poel responded. "On a course like this, tactics don’t really come into play."

According to him, the pace was simply too high for anyone to try to overtake him. "I don’t think there was much they could do. If they thought the pace was too slow, they would have taken the lead themselves. It’s easy to say after the fact, but this was just a very fair and extremely technical course. There wasn’t much room for tactics here."

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Cool, confident, and in control: Van der Poel dictates the race from the start

A Wout van Aert course? "That's something from five or six years ago"

Before the World Championships in Liévin, there was plenty of speculation about whether the course would favor Van der Poel or Van Aert. Initially, many believed Van Aert had the upper hand, but as the first races unfolded, it became clear that Van der Poel was more than comfortable on this terrain. "You still read comments about certain courses being more suited for Wout van Aert, but that was five or six years ago," the Dutchman said. "I've gotten stronger since then. It’s not something I lose sleep over anymore."

Because VDP hasn’t been standing still either. "I’ve made small adjustments along the way. We keep learning every week. This week, I could already feel that my legs were really good. That just makes it even easier to approach a World Championship with confidence."

Read also

Controversy in the Cyclo-Cross Worlds: Lucinda Brand furious over Van Empel’s tactics — but is that fair or not?

At Alpecin-Deceuninck, they watch in awe as Van der Poel chases records and pushes through pain ahead of World Championships

King Van der Poel crushes the competition at World Championships with embarrassingly hard start, Van Aert overcomes nightmare opening for silver

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