Van der Poel remains unbeaten after victory in Benidorm

Mathieu van der Poel claimed his sixth World Cup victory of the season in Benidorm. The world champion launched an impressive solo attack at the end of the opening lap. Thibau Nys and local rider Felipe Orts joined Van der Poel on the podium.

The Alpecin-Premier Tech duo Tibor Del Grosso and Mathieu van der Poel were the first to hit the front of the race. After a crash by Toon Aerts (Charles Liègeois-Deschacht) at the planks, the two quickly opened up a small gap. Van der Poel took over on the sloping finishing straight and dropped his teammate. By the end of the first lap, the world champion was already alone.

Belgian champion Thibau Nys (Baloise Verzekeringen – Het Poetsbureau Lions) also passed Del Grosso in the second lap. He tried to keep the gap to Van der Poel as small as possible, but there was no matching the world champion. Realising this, Nys eased off and was joined by a large chasing group.

The first acceleration from the chasing pack came from Joris Nieuwenhuis (Ridley Racing Team). Nys responded to the Dutch rider’s attack, with Mees Hendrikx (Heizomat – Cube) also joining them. A lap later, however, everything was back together again in the battle for second place.

In the fifth lap, the Spanish crowd went wild when Felipe Orts (Ridley Racing Team) launched an attack. The Spanish champion opened a small gap, and once again it was Nys who bridged across shortly afterwards. The two national champions worked together in an attempt to secure the remaining podium places—and successfully so.

After waiting for Orts several times, Nys eventually rode away from him. World champion Van der Poel celebrated victory with a 28-second advantage. Nys finished second, Orts third.