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Follow us on GoogleThe finale of the 2026 E3 Saxo Classic turned into a genuine thriller on Friday, with Mathieu van der Poel once again in the spotlight. The Alpecin-Deceuninck rider looked set to be caught in the closing stages by a four-man chase group, but somehow still managed to bend the Belgian Classic back to his will and take a remarkable victory.
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Per Strand Hagenes (Visma | Lease a Bike), Florian Vermeersch (UAE Team Emirates-XRG), Jonas Abrahamsen (Uno-X Mobility) and Stan Dewulf (Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale) came agonisingly close to Van der Poel. They could almost touch him, but then began looking at one another — and that hesitation allowed the two-time winner to ride away for good.
Visma | Lease a Bike sports director Arthur van Dongen then watched his rider Hagenes sprint to second place in Harelbeke. “When you cross the line and finish second, you think: damn. Especially when you were that close to bringing Mathieu back,” was the Brabander’s first reaction.
Continue reading below the photo!
Van Dongen on the final kilometre
“Per didn’t make any mistake at all in that final kilometre. They worked together really well, and that was the reason they almost managed to bring Van der Poel back. Per and Vermeersch still each did two long turns there. Then it was Abrahamsen’s turn, and he decided not to ride anymore, which is also fully his right and part of racing tactics. And that is the outcome.”
Van Dongen therefore pointed to the Uno-X rider. “He allowed that situation to happen, but again: he was free to race it that way. It was his turn, but he chose otherwise. Vermeersch and Per almost closed it down with those long pulls, but almost is not enough. And ifs don’t count, of course.”
At that stage, the sports director of the Dutch team was still partly guessing, although he has been in the sport long enough to understand what was likely going on. “You’d have to ask Abrahamsen why he stopped pulling at that moment, but you also know nobody enjoys doing one more long turn or leading out the sprint. From that side, I do understand it.”
Read on below the video!
Abrahamsen explains his tactic
And so we did ask the Norwegian, catching up with him while he was cooling down after the finish. “Was I surprised Florian looked at me? A little bit, yes, but I had nothing left in my legs and was gambling fully on a podium place. But let me say first of all that Mathieu van der Poel was simply very strong as well.”
And so we did ask the Norwegian, catching up with him while he was cooling down after the finish. “Was I surprised Florian looked at me? A little bit, yes, but I had nothing left in my legs and was gambling fully on a podium place. But let me say first of all that Mathieu van der Poel was simply very strong as well.”
And so we did ask the Norwegian, catching up with him while he was cooling down after the finish. “Was I surprised Florian looked at me? A little bit, yes, but I had nothing left in my legs and was gambling fully on a podium place. But let me say first of all that Mathieu van der Poel was simply very strong as well.”
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Tom van der Salm (27) comes from the charming town of Zeilberg (Deurne) in the Netherlands and has been working as editor-in-chief & journalist at IDL Pro Cycling's parent site, In de Leiderstrui, since 2019. He travels with the peloton from the Tour de France to the AlUla Tour and from the World Championships in Rwanda or Canada to the Zilvermeercross in Mol. In his spare time he enjoys playing football, mountain biking, running, walking with his Labrador/Stabyhoun, investing, holidays, (specialty) beers, reading, cooking and watching sports & documentaries!
Contact: [email protected]
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Latest Comments
- Eight riders told to go for stages, and nobody gets one—hard to know what the plan was there. It’ll be interesting to see whether they pick a clear leader next time.bikebuffj10-11-2026
- Was Bernal’s 20th place really their best GC result? I thought he might have finished higher. Either way, it sounds like a rough Tour for the whole team.gearguru3310-11-2026
- Five days in breaks with no stage win is a painful stat. The team had chances, but they need to turn those opportunities into results.julien10-11-2026
- The Onley Vuelta example makes sense: a team with someone to rally around often looks much more cohesive. Hopefully INEOS can build on that rather than expecting a quick return to the Sky years.cadencekingm10-11-2026
- Thomas is right about the ambiguity. Eight riders all chasing stages can end up pulling in different directions, even if nobody’s deliberately working against anyone. They need a clearer plan once the GC leaders are out.robert6510-11-2026
- What a mess. The report makes it sound as though nobody properly explained the decision, and that’s hard to defend.jennifer1910-11-2026
- I’m still learning the rules: does moving left in a sprint automatically bring a penalty, or does it depend on whether the other rider is blocked? It sounds like Brand wasn’t impeded here.patriciaw10-11-2026
- A final decision still needs a proper explanation. If the federation’s complaint goes nowhere, I hope the officials at least review how they handled the riders afterwards.michael5410-11-2026
- Fair play to Lucinda for saying Marie had won fair and square. That kind of sportsmanship matters, especially after such a controversial decision.raceready710-11-2026
- Schreiber beat Brand on the road, so the jury needed to explain clearly why that slight deviation warranted relegation. Being cut off before she could give her account sounds appalling.lindae10-11-2026
