A funny moment during the analyses on Play Sports and Proximus Pickx after the World Cup in Benidorm. After teasing 'good old' José De Cauwer, winner Mathieu van der Poel tried to make a deal with his Alpecin-Premier Tech teammate Jasper Philipsen.
Philipsen had come on as an analyst alongside Bart Wellens and José De Cauwer. The latter joked that Van der Poel might get a competitor in cyclocross, referring to the Limburg top sprinter.
"We've been pushing him for a few years now to try a cyclocross race. The race in Heusden-Zolder is ideal for him to do it once more. That's agreed then," laughed the world champion. To which Philipsen backed down.
Van der Poel, however, remained unfazed. "I think not only would I lap him, but he would be taken out of the race due to the 80% rule. Sometimes they underestimate the level of cyclocross, I think."
🇧🇪 Jasper Philipsen in cyclocross 😍
Although Mathieu van der Poel has serious doubts about that 😂👀#Cyclocross #mvdp #jasperphilipsen #cx #uciworldcup @JasperPhilipsen pic.twitter.com/Feh0uwBLc7
— Pickx Sports (@PickxSports) January 18, 2026
