Mathieu van der Poel delaying ‘cross season debut

Cycling fans were eager to see Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Fenix) starting his cyclocross season at the Rupchen round of the World Cup on Sunday, but it turns out they’ll have to wait longer.

Alpecin-Fenix announced Monday on Twitter that his return to the ‘cross circuit will be delayed one week after the rider and team management “consulted with the team’s medical staff.”

The Dutchman injured his knee while training in Belgium earlier this month and the pain seems to still bother him.
The cycling world has been counting down the days to see the Wout van Aert/MdvP rivalry resume, after some terrific racing all year round on the road. Van Aert dominated over the weekend in Italy, and seems poised to be the number one challenger to van der Poel, presuming the yellow jersey wearer can get back to training properly.

Marianne Vos had a brutal crash with 150 metres to go at the World Cup

Van Aert also impressed in his first race back in Boom. The Belgian crushed his competition in Boom at the Superprestige on Saturday. Van Aert’s return to cyclocross racing showcased his domination at a a muddy affair in Belgium in the fifth round of the Superprestige series. Nobody could hang with the Jumbo-Visma rider in the muck. It was van Aert’s first Superprestige triumph since 2017.

Everyone was anticipating Van Aert and Tom Pidock’s return to ‘cross, and with the Antwerp World Cup race cancelled, all eyes were on the Belgian and Brit in Boom, Belgium. Although van Aert was coming off a cold, it didn’t seem to slow him down.

Van Aert has won all three races in his return to cyclocross thus far. The next UCI Cyclocross World Cup is Dec. 18 in Rucphen, The Netherlands. You can watch the race on Flobikes.com