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The only way Mathieu van der Poel will lose the CX worlds is if his Lamborghini breaks down

The Dutchman, who's used the supercar to get some races, has been untouchable all season, and is poised for another rainbow jersey

Mathieu van der Poel and his Lamborghini Photo by: Lamborghini
February 2, 2024
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Yes, I know Mathieu van der Poel won’t be driving the 1,000 km in his Lamborghini from his home in Belgium to Tábor, Czech Republic for the ‘cross worlds, but please allow me to be hyperbolic this time. Why? Because Mathieu van der Poel has been absolutely unbeatable this year, and barring incident, he will crush the competition and take another rainbow jersey to add to his collection. A reader told me about a joke from Reddit where a few Redditors had made a similar quip about a broken-down Lambo being the only thing that stood in his way en route to the race–and they make a good point.

The world champ drove a brand-new Lamborgini Urus Super SUV to get to the X2O Trofee Herentals in December (where he won, obvi.) It’s not the first Lambo he’s driven: he became an ambassador for the supercar company in April. But this current rig is basically the cyclocross version of a sports car–so it’s the perfect match. But enough about Italian automobiles, how about is utter dominance the past two months?

He has won 12 out of 13 races this ‘cross season, and without some bad luck, it would have been a sweep. At the UCI World Cup in Benidorm, Spain, he looked poised to take the win when a crash into a pole (as in the inanimate object kind, not the Polish national ‘cross champ, Marek Konwa, type) wrecked his chances. Prior to that, he exhibited godly power as he crested the short climb each lap.

I am once again asking you to appreciate Mathieu van der Poel’s otherworldly power

This was on a day too which had been preceded by some hefty training. “I didn’t have teh freshest legs,” van der Poel said after the race, where he finished fifth.

Stunning exhibits of power

But for a guy with tired gams, he sure was impressive. He was way back in 19th after the first lap, and with the course being quick and the riders being strung out, it would be a tough feat to make it to the front.

By the third lap he would fly by eight riders. And those aren’t just any racers, but some of the best ‘cross riders in the world–and he made it look like they were 12-year-old racers. He would finally catch the lead group, but that little crash put him out of contention.

A course for power

Jeremy Powers told cyclingnews.com that the world championships course in is a “total wattage track,” so that sounds perfect for the Watt Monster himself. As long as he doesn’t have any bad luck–hopefully the pole incident will be the only incident of this year–he should put on an unforgettable performance.