Van der Poel lit up the racing several times at Tirreno-Adriatico Despite not winning a stage at Tirreno-Adriatico last week, Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Deceuninck) will enter the first Monument of the season at Milan-San Remo on Saturday with a solid week of tough racing in Italy under his belt.
Van der Poel believes he has sharpened the tools more than enough in his second race of the season, after debuting in 2025 with a win at Ename Samyn Classic , scoring a third place and second place finish on stages 4 and 5.
The Dutchman is eyeing a second title at La Classicisima to add to his 2023 victory, and for Alpecin-Deceuninck’s third Milan-San Remo win in a row, after helping bring back attacks on the Via Roma for eventual winner Jasper Philipsen at last season’s race .
"Of course, I would have liked to win a stage. But I still feel healthy and that would have been a victory in this weather anyway. I had a few good days last week. This is what I needed towards the classics," Van der Poel told Nieuwsblad and reporters before stage 7, after lighting up the racing several times at the Race of the Two Seas.
"The only pity is that I couldn’t win a stage. That wouldn’t have changed much for Milan-San Remo, but I would have liked to win anyway.
"I have also found the percentages I was looking for. This was simply a very good week. And I repeat: I have stayed […]
Continue reading the original article at: www.cyclingnews.com