Second place again. While Wout van Aert had to compete against a superior Mathieu van der Poel in recent cyclocrosses, he faced a different Dutch thorn in Heusden-Zolder. It was Tibor Del Grosso who denied Van Aert his first win of the season after a nail-biting finish.
How does Van Aert feel after this narrow loss to the Dutchman who is nine years his junior? "Of course, it's frustrating; it's always a pity to lose such a close finish," he told Telenet Play Sports. "It was an intense battle. It’s just not quite there, so I’m definitely disappointed."
Van Aert tried to drop Del Grosso along the way, but the Dutch champion proved particularly tough. "Midway through the race, I broke it open and made the selection with Tibor. After that, I pushed again on the last part of the course, which is the most selective, but I couldn't shake him there. When he was in front, I could feel we were evenly matched."
So it had to happen for Van Aert in the final lap. "In the last lap, I wanted to take the initiative and try to force him into a mistake. When we came to the sprint, it was close and just didn’t quite happen."
photo: Fotopersburo Cor Vos
About his sprint
"There was a strong headwind in the sprint. It was a very tough sprint to start from the front, but I also didn’t want to risk going into the sprint from second position. After all, there were still quite a few sections on the course where one could make a mistake."
"Looking back, maybe I should have gone earlier, but then there was the risk that I might have taken Tibor with me in my slipstream. It was just sport in its purest form. You must not underestimate the opposition at all. Tibor is a top talent and today he showed he deserves it," Van Aert praised the day’s winner.
photo: Fotopersburo Cor Vos
Telenet Superprestige Heusden-Zolder| Rank | Rider | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 58:48 | |
| 2 | " | |
| 3 | + 12 | |
| 4 | + 13 | |
| 5 | + 14 | |
| 6 | + 17 | |
| 7 | + 20 | |
| 8 | + 30 | |
| 9 | + 35 | |
| 10 | + 39 |
