Eli Iserbyt (Pauwels Sauzen-Bingoal) took his third win of the season and made it three from three in the Superprestige series after overhauling Joris Nieuwenhuis (Baloise Trek Lions) on the final lap in Niel.
The Belgian took advantage of a mistake in the pits late on by the Dutchman to bounce back from a disappointing sixth place at last week’s European Championships and solo home for the victory by 16 seconds.
Spanish rider Felipe Orts (Burgos-BH) scored the best Superprestige result of his career with third place at 41 seconds down, a rarely seen podium spot at a top-level cyclocross race from a southern European.
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Behind Orts, Laurens Sweeck led home Crelan-Corendon teammate Toon Vandebosch to take fourth place over a minute down on Iserbyt.
“I had a good feeling, but Joris was very strong,” Iserbyt said after the race according to WielerFlits. “I wanted to give it a try on the penultimate lap, but he really didn’t make a mistake. On the last lap, I knew it was important to be at the front over those bumps. There, I tried to play all or nothing and try to open a gap. That worked well. But I did have to go deep."
“I think I was better in the mud, to my surprise. He was much better on the uphill running sections – I kept missing a step there. It was always slightly above my height. But all in all, we kept a fairly steady pace, and I was able to speed up a bit at the end. I had a bit of a hard time when he accelerated, but I knew it was to my advantage if I went on and over."
“I am very happy that I got three out of three in the Superprestige, that is a dream start.”
Iserbyt took to the front of the race after Lars van der Haar fell in the heavy mud early on, causing him and his Baloise Trek Lions teammates to drop away from the head of the group. The 26-year-old immediately pulled out a gap to the rest, though Nieuwenhuis was quick to respond and make it two up front by the end of lap one as 10 seconds separated them from the rest.
Sweeck led the chase as European champion Michael Vanthourenhout (Pauwels Sauzen-Bingoal), Van der Haar, and teammate Thibau Nys lagged further behind. Orts also worked his way into the mix.
Up front, Iserbyt and Nieuwenhuis were inseparable as they built their lead over the chasers. On the penultimate of seven laps through the Belgian mud, the Dutchman looked to be getting the upper hand on Iserbyt, however.
He put on a burst of pace to distance the Belgian before the two were back together for the start of the final lap. Bad luck struck Nieuwenhuis in the pits, depriving fans of a big battle for victory – a bike change mishap saw him lose crucial time as Iserbyt rode away.
Further back, Orts was putting in one of the rides of his career, passing the likes of Nys and Sweeck to go clear in third place. He’d put 25 seconds into Sweeck by the finish to seal that podium spot, while up front Iserbyt had already claimed the solo victory.
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