“It’s a race that doesn’t excite me“. Mathieu van der Poel spoke frankly about the Tour de France in an interview broadcast on Sunday on the Belgian site Sporza. “Apart from trying to win stages and wear the yellow jersey, there is not much for me to gain in the Tour“, explained the grandson of Raymond Poulidor.
“I’d rather do five races where I’m able to win than 20 stages where I’m not competing for victory half the time“, argues “MVDP” which will celebrate its 30th anniversary on January 19.
The rider from the Alpecin-Deceuninck team, however, admits taking “pleasure“to help his Belgian teammate, the sprinter Jasper Philipsen,”to win as many stages as possible“. “I like it and it takes the pressure off me“, he says.
Paris-Nice rather than Tyrrhenian-Adriatic?
This season where he will try to become the only record holder for victories at the Tour of Flanders (4), Van der Poel could prefer Paris-Nice (March 9 to 16) to Tirenno-Adriatico (March 4 to 10). “This year’s course creates new dynamics. This is why Paris-Nice could be an option instead of Tirreno-Adriatico, which I have run a few times“, he continues, talking about his preparation for the Flandrian classics.
Another van der Poel, another masterclass: the highlights of the Ronde in video
Video credit: Eurosport
“Beating Tadej Pogacar in the Ronde promises to be difficult. But I’m happy to try to meet this challenge by thinking about how to close the gap” which, according to him, separates him from the Slovenian winner of the Flemish monument in 2023. But if he had to choose a single objective in 2025, the one who has already been world champion on the road, in cyclo-cross (six times) and in gravel, “would opt for the mountain bike world title” which is still missing from his list.
