Don’t look for Toon Aerts today at the Flandriencross in Hamme. The European champion is sick and therefore has to skip the third round of the X2O Badkamers Trofee. His team Deschacht-Hens-Maes has even more bad news: Victor Van de Putte also turns out to not be fit enough to participate.
After his somewhat surprising and very emotional victory at the European Championships in Middelkerke, Aerts seemed ready to shine more often. But since his European triumph, the 32-year-old Belgian’s form has declined significantly.
At the Jaarmarktcross in Niel (12th), Aerts was already not in contention, but the cyclocross rider himself said he saw this coming, just two days after his win at the European Championships. However, things also went badly at the Aardbeiencross in Merksplas. Aerts had a poor start, made an attempt to move up, but then dropped back further and crossed the finish line in only twentieth place.
Now there is an explanation for his subpar performances: Aerts is sick and therefore has to withdraw from the race in Hamme. The Flandriencross is the third round of the X2O Badkamers Trofee.
A major setback
This is a bitter pill for Aerts, as he was third in the general classification after a fifth place in the opening round on the Koppenberg and sixth in the Rapencross in Lokeren. For now, Joris Nieuwenhuis leads the overall standings, ahead of Brit Cameron Mason.
| Rank | Rider | Points | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Joris Nieuwenhuis | 03:03:37 | |
| 2 |  Cameron Mason | 03:04:01 | |
| 3 | (1) |  Thibau Nys | 03:04:19 |
| 4 | (1) | Niels Vandeputte | 03:04:54 |
| 5 | (1) | Lars van der Haar | 03:05:07 |
| 6 | (8) | Laurens Sweeck | 03:08:09 |
| 7 | (6) | Jente Michels | 03:08:17 |
| 8 | (1) | Michael Vanthourenhout | 03:08:21 |
| 9 | (1) | Toon Vandebosch | 03:08:38 |
| 10 | (1) | Witse Meeussen | 03:08:48 |
