Aerts calls himself a 'Neo-pro' and looks ahead to facing "those two rascals," Wout van Aert and Mathieu Van der Poel: "Not delusional to think I'll beat them"

It was raining crashes in the challenging cyclo-cross race of Namur. The course was wet and muddy. Aerts started strong but was significantly set back when he slid out on the off-camber section in the second lap. He even ended up under the fencing, costing him valuable time before he could get back into the race. The Belgian, however, fought tenaciously, chasing back to join Michael Vanthourenhout, the eventual winner, and the surprising Emiel Verstrynge.

After an attack by Verstrynge in the final lap, Aerts countered powerfully, gaining a lead on his competitors. Only Vanthourenhout stayed close, but even he seemed beaten. Then came the final passage on the tricky off-camber section. Aerts made an error, slipped, and handed what looked like a certain victory to Vanthourenhout.

“I made a stupid mistake on the slanted section,” Aerts admitted to IDLProCycling.com afterward. “In that final lap, I was completely on the limit, and I made a big error. I should have taken it a bit more cautiously because the climb in the final section suits me well. Even if Michael had come back, I could’ve still won. It’s my own fault, no excuses.”

The 31-year-old rider entered “the decisive part of the race,” in a winning position as he described it himself. “I admit that I started that slanted section with the intention of riding through it full throttle. In hindsight, that was stupid. That’s where experience comes in. Over the summer, I often joked that I feel like a neo-pro again, after not being able to race for two years (due to a doping suspension, ed.). And in a way, that’s true. I’ve noticed over the past weeks, especially at the start of the season, that I make stupid mistakes and lack a bit of technical sharpness.”

Because of his absence in recent years, Aerts has had little to no experience—except for a handful of recent races—riding in finales where he’s competing for the win. “More often than not, when I find myself in that situation, I make technical errors, even though I’m capable of handling it. It’s partly the stress, my heart rate is higher, I have to give it my all, and then you start to see double, and that’s when I make those mistakes.”

Unlike his direct rival Vanthourenhout, Aerts ended up at the bottom of the slanted section, while Vanthourenhout managed to pass along the top. “I can’t really say I chose the bottom line. But often in an off-camber section like that, you end up somewhere you don’t really want to be. The track drifted all the way to the outside, and then you just hope you’re leaning enough to avoid hitting the post. I’ll need to watch it back to see exactly why I ended up at the bottom. But it was a costly mistake.”

Although Aerts missed out on the victory, he rode a strong race. That didn’t offer him much consolation immediately after the finish, as you’d expect. “At this moment, I’m mostly disappointed. I’m still cursing about it. I had really set my sights on this weekend. Yesterday (in Herentals, ed.), I had mechanical issues, and today the mistake was my own.”

Without that decisive mistake, Aerts had a great chance to win, and according to the rider, it’s better to secure victories while you can. “I’ve already seen how hard it is to even get a podium spot, and there won’t be many more opportunities this season.”

Still, Aerts sees chances in the upcoming Christmas period, just as he did in Namur. “In Hulst, I need to survive and score points. Zonhoven and Gavere are two races that suit me well in the coming weeks. Two races where I want to compete for the marbles again. But we also have to see who shows up at the start. You know that if those two rascals show up, there’s no point in kidding yourself that we’re going to beat them. But even then, a second place is still great.”