The data reveals the sheer enormity of his performance, showcasing just how much power was needed to win the early spring classic race. It also gives us insight into the Dutchman's FTP, and enables us to compare his performance to that of his rivals on the day, as well as past editions of the race.
His final attack was a stinging acceleration that consisted of 15 seconds at 1,105 watts (Image credit: Strava)
For the final stinging attack in which he distanced Julian Alaphilippe (Deceuninck QuickStep) and Egan Bernal (Ineos Grenadiers), Van der Poel saw his peak power for the day, reaching 1,362 watts, continuing to put out 1,105 watts for 15 seconds, before averaging 556 watts for the remaining one minute and 23 seconds of the climb.
His earlier attack on Le Tolfe lasted a little longer, comprising a 50-second 774-watt effort, which peaked at 1,035 watts (Image credit: Strava)
What's more, for his earlier attack on Le Tolfe that successfully distanced his eternal rival Wout van Aert, as well as Tadej Pogačar, Tom Pidcock and Michael Gogl, he peaked at 1,035 watts in the middle of a 774-watt effort that lasted 50 seconds, before continuing his effort to average 522 watts for two minutes and 25 seconds.
Between Le Tolfe and the finish, he averaged 403 watts for 18 minutes and 34 seconds (Image credit: Strava)
From there onwards, the pace didn't let up. For the 18 minutes and 34 seconds that separated that attack and the finish line, Van der Poel averaged 402 watts, covering the 12.1km distance at an average speed of 39.2kph.
Judging by the zone distribution chart that accompanies the data, Van der Poel's FTP currently sits somewhere around the 420-watt mark, so despite averaging over 400 watts for this final portion of the race, it would still have afforded him some time to recover and prepare for that race-winning kick into the Piazza del Campo.
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The race may have been won with those two accelerations, but a lot of work went into the hours that preceded. For the entire four and three-quarter hours of racing, Van der Poel averaged 318 watts and a heart rate of 148 beats per minute, with various additional efforts throughout following the ebb and flow of the race.
The early off-road ascent to Grotti lasted a little over seven minutes, which he rode at 447 watts (Image credit: Strava)
The Strade Bianche route includes two significant climbs. The first is an off-road ascent from Salita Bagnaia to Grotti. Van der Poel went up this climb with the peloton, averaging 447 watts for the 7minute and 11 seconds effort.
The longest climb of the day took around 14 minutes, which was a relative cruise for the Dutchman at 376 watts (Image credit: Strava)
The second, the Montalcino, is the longest climb of the day. For this ascent, the Dutchman averaged 376 watts over 14 minutes and 11 seconds, with the peak output during this climb of 889 watts coming at the crest.
Throughout the race, Van der Poel picked up nine KOMs, including one covering the final 25km of the race, as well as a segment covering the final 630 metres. However, interestingly, despite his explosive ascent up the final climb into Piazza del Campo, it was only good enough for eighth place, nine seconds slower than his now-teammate Petr Vakoč managed in 2016.
The Strava Leaderboard for the final ascent into Piazza del Campo shows Van der Poel sitting in eighth place (Image credit: Strava)
Josh is Associate Editor of Cyclingnews – leading our content on the best bikes, kit and the latest breaking tech stories from the pro peloton. He has been with us since the summer of 2019 and throughout that time he's covered everything from buyer's guides and deals to the latest tech news and reviews.
On the bike, Josh has been riding and racing for over 15 years. He started out racing cross country in his teens back when 26-inch wheels and triple chainsets were still mainstream, but he found favour in road racing in his early 20s, racing at a local and national level for Somerset-based Team Tor 2000. These days he rides indoors for convenience and fitness, and outdoors for fun on road, gravel, 'cross and cross-country bikes, the latter usually with his two dogs in tow.
