Philippe Gilbert tips Mathieu van der Poel for Paris-Roubaix after his impressive victory in Tour of Flanders

Updated 02/04/2024 at 16:28 GMT

Belgian star Phillipe Gilbert knows how hard it is to win the Tour of Flanders, and the Classics specialist was incredibly impressed with what he saw last weekend as Dutchman Mathieu van der Poel rode away from the field to claim his third 'De Ronde' victory. With Paris-Roubaix up next, Gilbert had no hesitation in installing Van der Poel as his favourite for the 'Hell of the North'.

How 'impeccable' Alpecin-Deceuninck delivered Van der Poel to Flanders win

Mathieu van der Poel’s epic solo breakaway victory in the Tour of Flanders last weekend earned plenty of plaudits, not least from former Classics’ specialist in Philippe Gilbert.

Gilbert knows what it takes to win De Ronde, having done so in 2017 – but he believes that Van der Poel’s victory was even more special in many ways than his own.

Van der Poel rode away from the field with 45km to go on the Koppenberg in horrendously wet conditions on Saturday, for a lengthy solo victory. No-one got close to the Dutch world champion as he took his third Flanders victory – setting him up perfectly for a tilt at Paris-Roubaix this weekend.

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Between the rain, the course and the fact that everyone had him earmarked as favourite and thus watched his every move, it was a tough race for both Van der Poel and his Alpecin–Deceuninck team as they counted plenty of breakaway attempts – with their race management superb, something that very much caught Gilbert’s attention.

“He was the top favourite, everyone mentioned him, everyone mentioned the support he’d get from his team but then they turned up with a strong team, strong tactic and a really strong Mathieu van der Poel,” Gilbert told Eurosport commentator Rob Hatch as part of the Eurosport Cycling/Grupetto Show.

“He really raced perfectly in my eyes, defensive in the first part when everyone was attacking – it was full attack from some of the favourites of the day. And he was controlling, and just saving energy and at one point he just decided to go.

Men's race highlights - Van der Poel tames rain, wind and cobbles to triumph

“The average watts were quite high when they hit the climbs and then it never stops, the breakaway had maximum five minutes I think and it shows the intensity of the race. And we said already, a lot of attacks with 120km to go, very full one, maybe one of the hardest races ever.”

Team Visma Lease-a-Bike were without Wout van Aert – and will be for some time, with the Belgian out with multiple broken bones sustained in a nasty crash in the Dwars door Vlaanderen.

Gilbert was swift to note that with Visma missing an out and out sprinter, their tactics were limited in Flanders – and that might be something to consider when looking ahead to Paris-Roubaix this weekend.

“They had no choice but to attack, that’s why they went offensive and tried to break the race. They went man against man, and tried to play on the numbers because they knew if the race is hard, they are going to be there,” Gilbert said – with Visma’s aggression one of the many reasons De Ronde was such a difficult afternoon for so many.

Mathieu van der Poel now has three titles in Flanders to his name

Image credit: Getty Images

Looking ahead to Paris-Roubaix, even the Belgian great had to admit that of the two races, Roubaix still has the prestige and standing on the global stage. He won in the famous Andre-Petrieux velodrome in 2019 – and knows who is his favourite for Sunday’s ‘Hell of the North’.

“Of course [it’s Van der Poel], and with the confidence he has, he’s going to be there,” Gilbert said. “For sure he’s having a big chance again next week. And the fact he’s already won Roubaix is going to help him for sure.”

Van der Poel is the defending champion, having won Paris-Roubaix for the first time in 2023. And based on his form last weekend, you’d be hard-pressed to disagree with Gilbert and install anyone other than the talented Dutchman as favourite to add another title to his impressive collection.

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