Mathieu van der Poel breaks World Cup wins record in Hoogerheide

Mathieu van der Poel has broken the record for the most victories in World Cup races. The world champion rode to his 51st win in the sport’s most important regularity criterium in Hoogerheide after a long solo effort. Tibor Del Grosso and Niels Vandeputte were the strongest in the sprint from a large chasing group.

Belgian champion Thibau Nys (Baloise Verzekeringen – Het Poetsbureau Lions) was the first to enter the Dutch course. Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin–Premier Tech) followed a few places further back, while his teammate Tibor Del Grosso had a less successful start. The Dutch champion rode around outside the top ten but already briefly took the lead at the start of the second lap.

What’s more, he soon launched the first acceleration of the race. Del Grosso cleared the barriers smoothly and then pushed on, which prompted Van der Poel to react. The world champion sensed the danger and closed the gap to his teammate. Van der Poel’s engine was fully warmed up in the third lap. Just minutes after rejoining Del Grosso, he rode away on his own.

In no time, the world champion built up a 15-second lead. In the chasing group, Nys in turn caused a selection. Only the Alpecin–Premier Tech duo Del Grosso and Niels Vandeputte were able to follow his pace. When Nys eased off, the chasing group grew again to around twelve riders.

With two laps to go, Van der Poel already had a commanding lead of 1 minute and 20 seconds. Behind the world champion, it proved extremely difficult to make a difference. At the start of the final lap, Del Grosso tried once more. With Nieuwenhuis on his wheel, he halved the size of the chasing group.

Belgian champion Nys then pushed hard on an uphill section, but he too was unable to drop his rivals. What followed was a sprint from a large group. Nys entered the rising finishing straight in first position but was overtaken by Del Grosso. The Belgian champion sat up and ultimately also had to let Vandeputte pass. Meanwhile, 1 minute and 20 seconds earlier, Mathieu van der Poel had already crossed the line, claiming his 51st UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup victory and setting a new record. That way, the world champion also claimed the overall title.