Mathieu van der Poel leaves Sven Nys behind, now holds World Cup record alone

Mathieu van der Poel has had another successful weekend: after winning the Maasmechelen cyclocross on Saturday, he struck again on Sunday in 'his' Hoogerheide. Thanks to that latest victory, he is now the sole record holder for the most wins in the Cyclocross World Cup. MVDP now has 51 wins in the overall standings, while Sven Nys achieved 50 during his career.

After Van der Poel had already won fifteen times in the World Cup as a youth, junior, and under-23 rider, his first professional victory came on January 25, 2015. On that day, almost ten years ago, he was the best in 'his' Hoogerheide. He beat Wout van Aert and Gianni Vermeersch.

The sixth-place finisher that day? Sven Nys. The Belgian cyclocross legend had already recorded 49 World Cup wins as a professional. One season later, he would strike once more, in Koksijde, bringing his total to 50. Van der Poel matched that number with his win in Maasmechelen. By winning for the ninth time in Hoogerheide, he raised his total to 51 on Sunday.

Van der Poel is by far the most successful cyclocross rider of his generation, and this is particularly evident in the World Cup. In the 2016-2017 (three wins), 2017-2018 (seven), 2018-2019 (six), 2019-2020 (five), and 2020-2021 (two) seasons, the cycling phenomenon strung together a series of World Cup victories.

After his lost 2021-2022 cyclocross season — during which Van der Poel struggled with back problems and raced only two events — he managed to bounce back with five (2022-2023), five (2023-2024), five (2024-2025), and (so far) six (2025-2026) wins in the main overall classification.