The incredible cyclocross stats of Mathieu van der Poel

Hulst confirmed what we already knew: when Van der Poel starts, he usually wins.

The data, compiled by Belgian journalist Jonas Creteur, underlines just how far he has pushed that dominance. Across his professional cyclocross career, Mathieu van der Poel has won 183 races from 244 race days*. That equals a 75% win rate. In other words, when he starts, winning is pretty much the norm. He has finished on the podium 218 times, giving him an 89.3% podium rate, while his top-10 rate stands at over 95%.

With just three DNFs in his cyclocross career, Van der Poel has finished 98.8% of the races he has started.

The most extreme numbers come from the last three winters. Across 2023/24, 2024/25 and 2025/26, Van der Poel has started 34 races and won 33 (97% win rate). The only time he did not win was in Benidorm in January 2024, where a crash ended his chances.

* Criterium cross Waregem excluded

Van der Poel was tied for the all-time record with seven cyclocross world titles, alongside Erik De Vlaeminck, but the Dutchman’s victory in Hulst means he now stands along in the elite men’s category with eight rainbow jerseys.

The impact of Van der Poel’s dominance becomes even clearer when you place it alongside the record of his generational peer and long time rival, Wout van Aert.

Since the 2014/15 season, Van Aert has made 240 elite race starts*, a similar total as Van der Poel, and won 91 times. That gives him a career win rate of 37.9%. He has stood on the podium 197 times for a 82.1% podium rate, and finished in the top ten in 97.9% of his starts.

* Criterium cross Waregem excluded

One statistic where Van Aert has held an edge over Van der Poel, recently highlighted by Creteur, is his streak of seasons with at least one elite victory. From 2013/14 onwards, Van Aert won at least one cyclocross race in the elite category for 12 consecutive seasons.

That run came to an end last month. A crash in Mol forced him to stop his cyclocross season early, leaving him with no remaining opportunities to extend the streak this season. Only four riders have put together a longer run since the start of the World Cup era in 1993/94: Sven Nys with 18 seasons, Bart Wellens with 16, Daniele Pontoni with 16, and Richard Groenendaal with 15.

Van der Poel is a notable absence from that list, but the reason is straightforward. In the winter of 2022/23, back problems limited him to just two cyclocross starts, finishing second once and recording a DNF in the other.

It’s clear that there is big admiration between the two great rivals, with Van Aert acknowledging the recent exploits of Van der Poel in the recent seasons.

Speaking recently on Laurens ten Dam’s Live Slow Ride Fast podcast Van Aert stated, “With how dominant he is right now, I think everyone should be happy if Mathieu keeps racing. It’s fantastic to watch him ride. He is undoubtedly the greatest cyclocross rider of all time.”