Updated January 28, 2026 09:27PM
Cyclocross legend Sven Nys summed it up perfectly.
“They’d have to amputate a leg for Mathieu van der Poel to lose these world championships,” he said.
And Nys wasn’t being hyperbolic when he spoke to Wielerflits earlier this week.
Van der Poel obliterated the cyclocross winter with a bulldozer-meets-ballerina panache that’s never been seen before.
And now it seems like only a lost limb will stop the Dutch dominator from cementing “CX GOAT” status on Sunday at the UCI Cyclocross World Championships.
If Van der Poel wins on Sunday, he’ll go one better than Eric de Vlaeminck and remove any last doubt about who’s the best male ‘crosser in history. The two toppers are currently tied on seven elite cyclocross titles apiece, a mark that’s only bettered by Marianne Vos.
But the sad truth? That line of the record book will be overlooked when MVDP starts chasing Tadej Pogačar around San Remo in six weeks’ time.
In a modern era of WorldTour superteams and a Slovenian slayer, it’s the road that rules cycling’s conscience. Cyclocross is more at the margins than ever.
But that won’t stop Van der Poel from chasing his own muddy legacy in a rare corner of cycling that’s safe from King Pog.
‘Racing against Van der Poel is demotivating’
Van der Poel crushed the world of cyclocross without breaking a sweat this winter. (Photo: Billy Ceusters /Getty Images)
There’s a sense of collective resignation that MVDP will win a historic eighth cyclocross title on Sunday in Hulst.
There’s no Wout van Aert, no Tom Pidcock, and no Eli Iserbyt.
Thibau Nys is down in the dumps and sensing doom after a string of bad races. Nys’ Belgian teammate Tobor del Grosso is a raw talent, but a mere morsel for the victory-gobbling Dutchman.
And more to the point, Van der Poel just won 12 races in 12 attempts while barely breaking Zone 2.
“It’s a bit demotivating for the other riders. The difference is so big,” Belgian coach Angelo De Clercq told Wielerflits. “The cyclocross in Maasmechelen [last weekend – ed] was the best example. Mathieu had two punctures, but still won.”
Too right, Angelo.
Van der Poel’s winter has been truly obscene. He’s made dominance routine.
Van der Poel on the cusp of cyclocross history
Van der Poel can cement himself as greatest ‘crosser in history this weekend in Hulst. (Photo: Luc Claessen/Getty Images)
Van der Poel’s flawless winter leaves him sitting on an unbeaten streak that stretches back to January 2024 and a record of 51 World Cup wins.
But Alpecin-Premier Tech’s prize asset isn’t counting his historic eighth elite world title just yet.
Speaking this week to Het Laatste Nieuws, the 31-year-old said what came before — including his double-puncture comeback — won’t count for anything in Hulst.
He still has to earn his legacy.
“There’s no point in trying to make a statement before the world championships. Everyone’s starting from scratch in Hulst,” he said. “I just felt really good last week, and hopefully I’ll have a good day on Sunday as well.
“I’m focused and definitely not going there with the feeling that it’s already a given. I’ve had good preparation, and that gives me peace of mind,” Van der Poel said. “But it still has to happen.”
Will it take a crash, a mechanical, an act of god, or an amputated leg to stop Van der Poel?
Maybe so.
The road rules modern cycling
Van der Poel’s season will likely be measured by results at San Remo, Flanders, and Roubaix, not in CX. (Photo: Dario Belingheri/Getty Images)
Unlike the Pogačar vs Merckx debate on the road, there will be no doubt over MVDP’s status as an all-time great of cyclocross if — or when — he wins on Sunday.
But don’t come at us for saying it … Van der Poel’s season will be decided on the slopes and stones of the monuments spring.
It’s the slugfests with Pogačar, Van Aert, and Mads Pedersen that the cycling circus craves.
They’re the races that make the year-end highlights reels.
And beyond that, it’s the smooth tarmac and big budgets of the road that capture the sponsors, harvest the clicks, and pay for MVDP’s shiniest new golf clubs [not that MVDP doesn’t make a pretty penny from ‘cross, either].
Yet sadly for Van der Poel, his dominance in cyclocross no longer extends to the spring.
His status as patron of the pavé is at threat from Pogačar, and it will be even more so in 2026.
Van der Poel on the receiving end in the classics
Van der Poel’s rule over the cobbles has been rudely interrupted. (Photo: Jan de Meulenier – Pool/Getty Images)
Pogačar will return to the Tour of Flanders this season to defend his 2025 title. Either side of that, he’ll make more swings at Van der Poel across San Remo and Roubaix.
The upstart Slovenian will be just as much a favorite for those historic one-days as the Dutchman who counts six cobbled monuments — one short of Tom Boonen — on his palmarès, and two more from San Remo.
Indeed, Van der Poel’s winter warpath won’t worry Pogačar when they hit the Poggio, Paterberg, and Arenberg in a few months’ time — and the Dutchman knows it.
“I experience dominance on the road, albeit to a lesser extent, when Pogačar is racing,” Van der Poel told HLN as he pondered how it felt to be crushed every weekend.
“I know what it’s like to simply not be able to keep up on the Oude Kwaremont,” he said. “That motivates me to keep working or to adjust a few things in training.”
Van der Poel is no longer the man to beat in the northern classics. But he can take consolation in one thing.
His cyclocross status is Pog-proof.
Van der Poel won’t stop ‘crossing until he’s undisputed king
Thousands of fans will show up to CX worlds this weekend to follow Van der Poel’s chase for history. (Photo: Billy Ceusters /Billy Ceusters)
Cyclocross was pushed deep to the margins this winter. Without Wout, Pidders, and eternal chaser Iserbyt, those muddy time trials were best watched in highlights reels, not full replays.
But this niche of the sport ain’t going away.
Organizers of this weekend’s worlds claim they’ve sold more than 35,000 tickets for two days of beers, frites, and CX fandom. The big Dutch brawl between Lucinda Brand, Puck Pieterse, and Ceylin del Carmen Alvarado on Saturday in the women’s race will be a must-watch.
And while Van der Poel’s 2026 might be measured by his spring, he knows his lasting legacy is wrapped up in ‘cross – and he won’t stop chasing his muddy, marginalized first love until he’s guaranteed immortality.
“I haven’t made a final decision about stopping cross yet, and I won’t do so immediately after worlds,” Van der Poel told HLN. “And if it doesn’t work out for me on Sunday, I’ll definitely keep going.
“Now that I’m so close to that record, it’s definitely a goal.”