Van der Poel sums it all up in one Cruijffian sentence: "As energy efficient as possible is good enough"

Mathieu van der Poel was as dominant as expected in the Exact Azencross in Loenhout. After about half an hour, the world champion accelerated from the lead, and his opponents had to admit defeat. Covered in mud, Van der Poel crossed the finish line as the winner. "It was a traditional muddy cross, but I actually enjoy that," he said with a hearty laugh afterwards.

Van der Poel talks about the deliberate acceleration. "I didn't really have a specific part of the course in mind for a breakaway. The group just remained a bit too large, and I mainly wanted to thin it out a bit. I just kept pushing. It was good for me that Gianni (Vermeersch, ed.) was there again," Mathieu refers to his teammate who eventually finished second in the race.

"Before the washboard there was a muddy section, and I thought Gianni was on my wheel, so it seemed like a good moment to keep pushing," says VDP. "But I immediately had a nice gap, so that was actually ideal with three laps to go. In such a scenario, you shouldn't hesitate."

Additionally, it was important for Van der Poel to be able to ride his own lines. "Of course, it was a challenging course, but I did what I wanted to do. So, I am satisfied. When you are in someone's wheel, you have a lot less control over the lines you take. You just don't see very well where you are riding. From the moment I was alone at the front, I could do my own thing a bit more and that means you ride more easily and in a more controlled manner."

To summarize his race tactics in one sentence, Van der Poel used a phrase from the Cruijffian playbook. "As energy efficient as possible is good enough," the Dutchman stated, then went on to elaborate on that assertion. "That is really the key for me. Now, as I head back to Spain, I want to start training well immediately instead of recovering from the Christmas period."

Van der Poel wants to "catch up on sleep" after Diegem

On Saturday, the World Cup in Hulst is also on the agenda for Van der Poel. It will be his third race in three days. Does this affect his preparation? "No, not really. I'm going to eat something, get a little massage, and then head to bed early. I need to catch up on some sleep after Diegem!", he refers to Thursday's evening cross. "It's nice to win here. This is a race I like coming to because Loenhout is close to where I live."

He is definitely looking forward to the cyclo-cross in Hulst, his last of this year. "I think we are going to get some real mud there for the first time, so far I have mainly ridden there in good conditions. So, I'm curious to see what it's like now," he briefly looks ahead to Sunday's race.