Wout van Aert snatches victory at E3 Saxo Classic as Mathieu van der Poel and Tadej Pogacar attacks fail

Wout van Aert (Jumbo-Visma) got his rewards for suffering up and down the cobbles as he defended his title at E3 Saxo Classic after an absorbing scrap with Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin–Deceuninck) and Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates).

Despite being distanced on the climbs under pressure from his two superstar rivals, the elastic never fully snapped, allowing the Belgian to latch back on before winning a three-up sprint in the dress rehearsal for the Tour of Flanders on April 2.

“I really wanted to focus on the sprint and try to stick to one plan,” said Van Aert. “It’s just nice. It’s a long while so I’ve won a race on a road bike. I had a difficult preparation going into the Classics but I’m on the right path.”

The race exploded into life on the Taaienberg with 81km remaining as the first cobbles rattled by, with Van der Poel exploding away to end any hope the day’s five-strong breakaway had of victory. Van Aert followed, along with the break’s last survivor Kelland O’Brien (Jayco AlUla), prompting Pogacar to launch a panicked chase.

Despite having plenty of riders for company, Pogacar was forced to do the lion’s share of the hunt, eventually bridging over after 4km of hard riding as a 12-strong group formed at the front.

Van der Poel, clearly concerned at the presence of three Jumbo-Visma jerseys in that pack, then attacked again with 67km remaining, driving up the pace and almost forcing Pogacar into a face-first introduction with a roadside house after he hesitated on a wet patch of road. Fortunately, the Slovenian swerved just in time.

More chaos soon ensued as Dylan van Baarle (Jumbo-Visma) crashed and Van der Poel attacked once more, with a new reduced group of six soon forming at the front: Van Aert and Van der Poel, each with one team-mate for company, plus Pogacar and downhill specialist Matej Mohoric (Bahrain Victorious).

Then it was the turn of Pogacar to shake things up. He launched on the iconic and brutally steep Paterberg, with only Van der Poel and Van Aert able to follow. Although the race eventually came back together after the summit, it was a sign of events to come.

Pogacar’s second move was more lethal. The two-time Tour de France champion attacked from the first cobble of the Oude Kwaremont, dragging Van der Poel along and leaving Van Aert in no man’s land as the other three wilted. But as fans spilled out onto the road, willing their national hero up the steep ascents, Van Aert somehow clung on.

Soon the Belgian had barged back into the party and with those behind well adrift, the attacks dried up. Pogacar briefly dared with two moves off the back in the final 5km, knowing he would likely lose any sprint, but neither looked like sticking.

Van der Poel headed into the finale as favourite, having animated much of the day, but it was the unusually reserved Van Aert who was rewarded for his cautious efforts in the three-up showdown as he took a fine victory. Still, all three riders have positives to take ahead of the big one in Flanders – a race only one of the trio, Van der Poel, has won.

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