Van der Poel cruises to victory in Ethias Cross Bredene
World champion solos in after Aerts punctures
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Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Fenix) put his rainbow jersey on display with another solo victory, this time at the Ethias Cross in Bredene, where he rode away from Toon Aerts (Telenet-Baloise) midway through the race to win with relative ease.
Aerts held on for second, having lost contact on lap five after puncturing, while Michael Vanthourenhout (Pauwels Sauzen-Bingoal) came in a distant third over Gianni Vermeersch.
Curtis White (Cannondale-Cyclocrossworld) got the hole shot after a quick start off the front row, but it was a short lived time in the lead as Van der Poel, Gianni Vermeersch (Credishop-Fristads), Aerts and Michael Vanthourenhout (Pauwels Sauzen-Bingoal) came to the fore.
Article continues belowBy the end of the third lap, Vanthourenhout was left behind by the leading trio after sliding out in one of the many slippery off-camber rises, while Vermeersch lost touch on the next lap, leaving Aerts and Van der Poel in the lead.
A puncture for Aerts gave Van der Poel all the gap he needed to cruise to victory after the halfway point.
Aerts held on for the runner-up spot over Vanthourenhout, whose brother Diether was racing in his final 'cross event before retirement.
| Pos. | Rider Name (Country) Team | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mathieu van der Poel (Ned) Alpecin-Fenix | 0:59:03 |
| 2 | Toon Aerts (Bel) Telenet Baloise Lions | 0:01:01 |
| 3 | Michael Vanthourenhout (Bel) Pauwels Sauzen-Bingoal | 0:01:42 |
| 4 | Gianni Vermeersch (Bel) Credishop-Fristads | 0:01:48 |
| 5 | Tom Meeusen (Bel) Group Hens-Maes Containers | 0:01:59 |
| 6 | Diether Sweeck (Bel) Credishop-Fristads | 0:02:05 |
| 7 | Nicolas Cleppe (Bel) Telenet Baloise Lions | 0:02:11 |
| 8 | Tim Merlier (Bel) Alpecin-Fenix | 0:02:23 |
| 9 | Yentl Bekaert (Bel) Telenet Baloise Lions | 0:02:32 |
| 10 | Anton Ferdinande (Bel) Pauwels Sauzen-Bingoal | 0:02:43 |
| 11 | Curtis White (USA) Cannondale-Cyclocrossworld |
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