Zonneveld: “Wout van Aert rode the final kilometre like a rookie”

It was an encouraging sight ahead of Milan-San Remo and the rest of the spring. Van Aert showed himself on the climbs and appeared to come over the top with ease alongside riders such as Isaac del Toro and Matteo Jorgenson. Zonneveld, too, was upbeat about the Belgian’s condition.

“This was a really good Van Aert. In terms of condition he was already far along, if you saw who was being ridden off the wheel,” said the Dutch analyst, referring to Richard Carapaz, Santiago Buitrago and Paul Lapeira. Despite that strong form, Van Aert was ultimately unable to properly fight for the victory, but according to Zonneveld that came down to a number of poor decisions.

It started with Jorgenson’s stoic turn on the front. “By doing that, they put all their cards on the table. That gives Van Aert so much extra pressure.” Pressure that the Visma | Lease a Bike rider does not need. “You can already see the pressure of having to win. It is no longer we may win or we are going to race freely for Wout.” But where it really went wrong, according to Zonneveld, was Christen’s attack inside the final kilometre.

“You cannot launch one sprint at 900 metres, another at 600 metres, and then still expect to have a finishing sprint left in your legs.” Zonneveld was therefore critical of the Belgian. “He rode that final kilometre like a rookie, like a headless chicken.” In Zonneveld’s view, Van Aert practically handed Van der Poel the victory. “He served him the win on a silver platter.”

The analyst also noted that Van Aert tends to make these kinds of mistakes particularly when Van der Poel is in the race. According to the former rider, that has everything to do with the palmarès of the former world champion. “Mathieu has won so much that it no longer matters to him if he loses: he dares to gamble. Van Aert knows that as well, but he is trying to bluff someone holding a better hand.”

Even without Van der Poel, the Belgian might not have won. “He messed up his sprint anyway; he also finished behind Tobias Halland Johannessen and Pellizzari, and those are riders he should still be beating.” Zonneveld had one final rebuke left. “How can he think he can do two extra sprints with Van der Poel on his wheel? His instinct has really been missing for quite some time now.”