Nys won Saturday but had a litany of issues in Sunday’s cross race. Will his early start compared to other key road riders see him run flat again this year?
Thibau Nys celebrates his win in Koppenbergcross on Saturday 01 November 2025. (Photo: Jasper Jacobs / Belga Mag via AFP)
Published November 2, 2025 07:13PM
Thibau Nys has long been viewed as one of the biggest young talents in cyclocross, winning the European title last year plus World Cup race wins in the past two seasons.
He’s also a gifted road rider with the Lidl-Trek team, winning the Tour de Hongrie last year, the GP Miguel Indurain this season, and netting fifth in Liège-Bastogne-Liège.
The 22-year-old is brim full of confidence as his cross season begins, and captured win number one on Saturday in the Koppenbergcross.
“For the first time I had an almost flawless preparation. And I don’t train to win, I train to dominate,” he smiled, speaking in the first episode of the Rufus YouTube series released by his Baloise Glowi Lions cross squad.
“I’m still in a phase of my career where I’m growing. And then you always want to do better next season than the year before. I want to win more races, I want to extend my titles and dominate wherever I can. I want to take another step and bring spectacle everywhere. That’s my goal,” he says bluntly.
He duly delivered in the Koppenbergcross, winning it for the second year in a row. He was at the front of the race by the end of the last lap and then rode his rival off his wheel, ending up well clear of everyone bar Cameron Mason.
The Briton was 21 seconds behind at the finish; Pim Ronhaar was next, a full 1:44 back.
He predicted a big ride before the race. “The level is high, but… mine is going to be higher,” he said.
Setbacks on Sunday
Thibau Nys had a lot of bad luck during the “Rapencross” cyclocross in Lokeren on Sunday 02 November 2025. (Photo: David Pintens / Belga via AFP)
He started Sunday’s X2O Badkamers Trofee race as one of the top favorites but was plagued by bad luck. He changed bikes early on, but his replacement machine hit a bump and his brake shifters slipped downwards. He changed machines again, but the next bike had crooked handlebars. Farcically, the saddle slipped on his next bike.
That all held him back, and so too did two subsequent crashes. He ultimately finished 15th in a day he will wish to forget.
Still, the form he showed Saturday sets him up well for the defense of his European title next week. However, he admits the course at Middelkerke will be a tougher ask than last year’s race.
“My sand skills aren’t that great,” he said on Saturday, “so even with this shape it’s going to be really, really difficult to win the European championships again.”
Nys is clearly intent on a big cross season, and has certainly started on a bright note. Other road stars are more cautious: Mathieu van der Poel and Wout van Aert are holding off for now, with the latter saying recently that his road season will take priority and that it will be a few more weeks before he will appear.
Getting the timing just right?
Thibau Nys was impressive in Koppenbergcross (Photo: Jasper Jacobs / Belga via AFP)
As for Tom Pidcock, another of the so-called “Big 3,” he has been riding the Gravel Burn in South Africa. His own cyclocross season debut is also delayed.
Nys has no such qualms and is already going flat out. That approach will enable him to fight in the Europeans and to do well in upcoming races, but it remains to be seen what effect this could have on his road season.
Last year he started strongly, winning the GP Miguel Indurain as his first road race. He had a solid performance in the Ardennes Classics, netting 12th in the Amstel Gold Race, eighth in Flèche Wallonne and fifth in Liège.
However, the rest of the season was below the expectations of him and his team. There were high hopes for his Tour de France debut but his 12th-place finish on the stage to Carcassonne was his only result inside the top 50.
Given that he rode 22 cross races last winter, much more than the big three, it’s legitimate to ask if he left too much on the trails then, and risks doing so again now.