Van der Poel gives himself an early birthday present at World Cup Benidorm
48 hrs ago, Mathieu van der Poel wasn't even on the start list for UCI World Cup Benidorm, but as the sun sank towards the horizon on Sunday afternoon, the world champion soloed to an emphatic victory after going clear at the end of the first lap.
Van der Poel was able to take advantage of a blistering effort from Alpecin-Premier Tech teammate Tibor Del Grosso for much of the opening lap, the young Dutchman's infernal pressure possibly contributing to third-wheel Toon Aerts' mishap at the barriers that created the decisive gap.
Suddenly alone, Del Grosso and Van der Poel were conjoined until the start-finish climb, where the world champion put the hammer down. And that was that, with seven laps remaining. Van der Poel eventually took the win by half a minute, which means he also extends his lead in the overall standings – and all the day before his 31st birthday.
Elite men’s top 5, Benidorm
- Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Premier Tech) 1:01:04
- Thibau Nys (Baloise Verzekeringen-Het Poetsbureau Lions) +0:28
- Felipe Orts (Ridley Racing Team) +0:32
- Tibor Del Grosso (Alpecin-Premier Tech) +0:44
- Niels Vandeputte (Alpecin-Premier Tech) +0:44
Elite men’s World Cup standings after Benidorm (round 10/12)
- Mathieu van der Poel – 240 pts
- Thibau Nys – 220 pts
- Niels Vandeputte – 197 pts
- Michael Vanthourenhout – 187 pts
- Laurens Sweeck – 186 pts
