Fans were savouring another toe-to-toe Mathieu van der Poel vs Wout van Aert contest at Monday’s fifth round of the 2025-2026 X2O Badkamers Trofee series, the Azencross, in Loenhout, Belgium, before a van Aert flat tire spoiled the party. Van der Poel cantered to victory.
Earlier in Monday’s program, in the Junior men’s race, Fabrice Dufresne at 26th was Canada’s best result. Thomas Deniger was 68th.
Preliminaries
Round 2 victor Joris Nieuwenhuis, not at his best after a crash in the Antwerp World Cup, led the classification by 43 seconds over two-round winner but absent Thibau Nys and 45 seconds over Cameron Mason.
Tyler Clark (Caledon Hills Armada), Rhett Bates and Liam Sargent (Broad Street Off Road) made up the Canadian contingent.
Toon Aerts snagged an early lead after the green light, while van der Poel didn’t have a strong start, but the latter soon was up to seventh. The tricky ditch crossed up Nieuwenhuis, who had to take a fresh bike. Van der Poel snagged a fan at the barriers, making him wobble, but he was with the leading octet that finished the first circuit. Van Aert was there, as well.
Aerts continued as the little train’s locomotive on Lap 2, as Mason laboured to join the front group. Nieuwenhuis then took charge.
On Lap 3 of 8, that man in yellow, Wout van Aert, grabbed the reins. Van der Poel was savvy in establishing himself on his rival’s six. This action fragmented the group. Soon the two had only each other for company, 11 seconds clear at the line.
The crowd was bonkers as the two great rivals continued their brawl on Lap 4. The world champion piled on the pressure and established a gap. A van Aert flat spoiled the party. Van Aert rejoined the now-huge chase group.
The day’s winner was a foregone conclusion by Lap 5 , so the main question became who would stand on the podium with the man in the rainbow jersey? Nieuwenhuis had the bit between his teeth, but van Aert wanted to salvage something from Azencross so he grabbed the lead on Lap 6. Then he suffered another flat.
Niels Vandeputte slipped around the snakebit van Aert and headed into the penultimate lap six seconds ahead of Nieuwenhuis. Vandeputte’s gap was even larger when he heard the bell. Nieuwenhuis finished on the podium and padded his series lead: Vandeputte and Mason are both +1:01. Van Aert placed tenth.
The sixth round is on New Year’s Day, the GP Sven Nys in Baal.
2025-2026 X2O Badkamers Trofee, Round 5, Loenhout
1) Mathieu van der Poel (The Netherlands/Alpecin-Deceuninck) 57:48
2) Niels Vandeputte (Belgium/Alpecin-Deceuninck) +0:46
3) Joris Nieuwenhuis (The Netherlands/Ridley) +0:57