Mathieu van der Poel secured his record eighth Cyclo-cross Worlds Championships win on Sunday, cementing him not only as a modern dominant force but also one of the sport’s greatest ever.
Van der Poel entered the 2025/26 season as a favourite and lived up to expectations, winning all of the races he entered and racking up points to take the first spot at the individual ranking of the UCI’s Men Elite Cyclo-cross as of January 27.
But the Dutchman’s victory at the Cyclo-cross World Championships in Hulst underscored his brilliance after he surpassed the long-standing record of Belgian rider Eric De Vlaeminck, who won his seventh title in 1975.
Meanwhile, compatriot Lucinda Brand shrugged off earlier disappointment to take the cyclo-cross world crown in the women’s elite category on Saturday.
No rival, no problem for van der Poel
Tibor del Grosso and Thibau Nys looked set to challenge van der Poel at the start, leading through the opening half lap.
However, van der Poel clawed his way back to the front in lap two and never gave the other two any chance to rival him for gold.
While van der Poel was cruising to a solo win, del Grosso and Nys ended up duelling over silver, with the former grabbing the second-place crown and the latter settling for third.
“When I started, my absolute dream was to win the World Championships at elite level,” Van der Poel said in a post-race interview.
“To be here now with eight titles is extraordinary.”
He won all eight races he entered this season, before barging into the rankings and winning his second cyclo-cross World Cup title.
One of cyclocross’ greats
Some of his competitors also praised van der Poel for his dominant victory.
Toon Aerts, who finished eighth in the world, even compared him to cycling great Eddy Merckx.
“I think there is currently one rider in the whole world who is better on a bike. Certainly on specific terrain, uphill,” Aerts said, referring to Tadej Pogačar, in an interview with Cycling Up to Date.
“But for the rest, Mathieu van der Poel is a man like Eddy Merckx for me. I never saw Eddy Merckx race, but I think it must have been something like that.”
Wout van Aert, who had to step back from the season after an ankle fracture he sustained while battling van der Poel at the Exact Cross in Mol last month, lauded his strength on Laurens ten Dam’s Live Slow Ride Fast podcast ahead of the race on Sunday.
“When it matters, I’ve never seen Mathieu hesitate,” he said.
“Mathieu has shown a hundred times that he is strong enough to ride solo for an hour. You can’t make it more exciting than it is.”
His words definitely hold weight, considering van Aert has raced van der Poel nearly his whole life, which bloomed into one of cycling’s most beloved rivalries.
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Possible cyclo-cross retirement?
But van der Poel’s win also renewed speculation over his future in this area of the sport, which was ignited when he dangled that possibility in an interview with HLN.be in December.
“It is something I think about,” he said back then.
“I have always said it would be very nice to stop in my own country with the record. For the rest, there would not be much more left for me to achieve in cyclo-cross.”
Van Aert did not shy away from expressing his disbelief over that rumour in the podcast, saying everyone should be “happy” at the prospect of van der Poel continuing racing with how dominant he is.
“It’s fantastic to watch him ride,” he said.
“He is without doubt the greatest cyclo-cross rider of all time.”
Lucinda Brand wins under pressure
Meanwhile, the women’s elite at the world championships provided plenty of action, including Brand blowing her rivals away to snatch the rainbow jersey.
Puck Pieterse, Ceylin del Carmen Alvarado and Blanka Kata Vas dominated the front right from the start, opening the gap until Brand joined the group.
Vas then got dropped to leave the battle for gold among the Dutch.
But Pieterse crashed soon after, while Alvarado suffered an error, paving the way for Brand towards victory.
Alvarado and Pieterse completed the all-Dutch podium in second and third, respectively.
“It’s so wonderful to win the most important event of the season when you’ve already had a really good one,” she said in an interview after the race.
“Of course, I’m relieved, but that relief might have been even greater if I hadn’t already won the world title.”
The sought victory offered Brand room to celebrate after she failed to secure titles at the European and Dutch national championships earlier.
Although she bounced back this season with several wins including at the World Cup, she brought that pressure and used it to power her towards another world championships title following her first one in 2021.
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