Mathieu van der Poel's victories rise to nine: yesterday the Dutchman secured a new success on the Zonhoven course, winning ahead of Del Grosso and Verstrynge. At this point in the season, the world champion already has one more victory than the entire previous year, when his season ended with his eighth victory at the World Championship in Liévin. Yesterday, the Dutchman had an excellent start and dominated the entire race with extreme supremacy. "I tried to stay focused for an entire hour," Van der Poel said, "because in some sections the course was turning into a real ice rink".

Mathieu van der Poel immediately attacked. Aerts followed him for a while, but after the De Kuil, the new bridge added to make the course even more appealing, he was definitively dropped. "My intention was to stay ahead, arriving at my pace as quickly as possible, and I can say that for once I started well. I immediately began doing things my way, following my lines, and it's in these conditions that I give my best, that is, when I can manage the race as I want." For the world champion, everything went according to plan until the fourth lap, when he punctured two tires at once. His advantage was halved, but his ninth seasonal victory was never in danger.

"Right after the finish line, there's a section with many stones that I know well. I immediately felt that I had a flat tire. The stretch to the pit stop was quite long, and this somewhat disrupted my rhythm. Pedaling with a flat tire for so long always requires energy. I tried to stay as focused as possible to avoid making mistakes, because in some sections the circuit seemed like a single sheet of ice".

Last season, Mathieu van der Poel raced and won eight cyclocross races; this is already his ninth consecutive victory, and considering the race on January 24th and then the World Championship, the total could grow even more. "As I move forward in years, I reflect on this more and more and enjoy it more. Because everything is fleeting, and so will I be. I certainly don't take it for granted. I will continue to work hard and hope that there will be more great victories".