Bakelants has a theory on why we’ll see a very strong Van Aert in the Tour de France: "It will depend on the team"

Away from the spotlight, Van Aert is quietly preparing for the Tour de France. The Belgian hasn't raced since the final stage of the Giro on June 1st. But on July 5th, he’ll be back in action in Lille, where the Tour kicks off. According to Bakelants, the Visma | Lease a Bike rider will be in peak form by then, something he has said before, and now reiterates with even more certainty. In fact, Bakelants seems convinced that his fellow countryman and good friend will be better this summer than he was in the spring.

"That’s my conclusion," Bakelants told Wieler Revue. "Maybe Wout would disagree, but summer Wout is on another level compared to spring Wout. Just look at the spectacular performances he’s delivered in the Tour... His best performance in a spring classic actually came in autumn. That Tour of Flanders during the COVID year, when Mathieu van der Poel only just beat him." The Belgian ex-pro is referring to October 2020, when Van Aert was narrowly defeated by his Dutch rival.

Bakelants even sees Wout’s performances forming a pattern when looking at the seasons. "At university, I learned about circadian rhythms. That’s the body’s day-and-night rhythm, but over a longer period you can also interpret it as seasonal variation. For the big cycling teams, that’s still unexplored territory, but it might partly explain some riders' results." Still, the Belgian knows Van Aert himself doesn’t believe in it. "Wout probably thinks it’s complete nonsense, but if I had my own team, I’d definitely contact a university to investigate it further."

If Van Aert really heads to the Tour de France in top form, there will be immediate opportunities for him in the first week. A few of the opening stages seem tailor-made for the Belgian. "Stages two and four are right up Wout’s alley," Bakelants observes. "But it’ll depend on the team and their plans. For Vingegaard, those early northern France stages will bring a lot of stress."

"The Tour is kind of Wout’s race, it's where we’ve always seen the best version of him. As far as I’m concerned, we can absolutely expect yellow and a stage win, just like in 2022," says Bakelants, who also set a clear benchmark for success. "The Tour is a success if Wout wins at least one stage. If he doesn’t, the Tour is a bit of a flop."