World champion Mathieu van der Poel has called an end to his road season, forgoing his final scheduled races to take a break from racing ahead of his winter cyclocross commitments.
The Dutchman has taken part in five races since winning the rainbow stripes in Glasgow early last month but has cut his season short two race days before previously planned. He'll now miss Thursday's Circuit Franco-Belge and his planned finale at Paris-Tours on October 8.
Van der Poel's Alpecin-Deceuninck team broke the news in an Instagram post announcing their lineup for the Circuit Franco-Belge, with sprinter Jasper Philipsen set to replace him for the 190km one-day race.
"Sunday, Mathieu van der Poel ended a long and successful summer season," the team announced. "He is now enjoying a holiday period before preparing for the upcoming cyclocross season.
"In Circuit Franco-Belge, Mathieu will be replaced by Jasper Philipsen."
Earlier this month, Van der Poel stated that he was considering ending his season early after finishing fourth at the GP de Wallonie. The result, which followed 74th place at the Bretagne Classic and 88th at the GP de Fourmies, saw him considering that he wouldn't hit top form again during the remainder of his road campaign.
"I notice myself that I'll no longer reach my top form, both physically and mentally," he told Het Nieuwsblad.
"I already know that I'm not going to reach my best form now. I think Paris-Tours is one of the nicer races of the season; that's why I wanted to ride it. But if [the form] doesn't get better, I don't know.
"Just riding around to ride around doesn't make much sense. Maybe it would be better to rest and prepare for the cyclocross season. A longer period without a race would do me good."
Van der Poel went on to compete at the Super 8 Classic on September 16, taking what turned out to be his final victory of the season from a group of six riders. He also appeared at the Paris Olympics cross-country mountain bike test event on Sunday, finishing in 28th place.
Now, Van der Poel will rest ahead of the 2023-24 cyclocross campaign where, as on the road, he'll race in the world champion's jersey. It's not yet clear when he'll begin his 'cross season, though if recent seasons are anything to go by, he'll tackle a limited calendar starting in late November or early December.
The 28-year-old ends the 2023 road season with six victories to his name and a top-10 placing in the UCI rankings (he's currently seventh with several weeks of racing to go). Along with his wins in Glasgow and the Super 8 Classic, he took Monument victories at Milan-San Remo and Paris-Roubaix, plus a stage and the overall at the Baloise Belgium Tour.
