Dutch rider Joris Nieuwenhuis took his third win of the season at the fourth round of the Telenet Superprestige in Merksplas on Saturday. The Ridley Racing rider suffered a poor start, crashing on the opening circuit, but battled back to a five-man leading group on the fifth of nine laps.
After a combative couple of circuits, the Dutchman attacked solo, squeezing the life out of his opponents, edging ahead and beating Niels Vandeputte (Alpecin-Deceuninck) by six seconds, with Emiel Verstrynge (Crelan-Corendon) in third.
Having started the day second in the Superprestige overall ranking, Vandeputte moves into the series lead, previous leader, Michael Vantourenhout (Pauwels Sauzen-Altez Industriebouw) having a bad day, finishing eighth.
How it unfolded
Merksplas hosted round four of the 2025/26 Telenet Superprestige on Saturday, the Aarbeiencross covering nine laps of a technical 2.9km circuit, with an increasing amount of mud, with planks and a sandpit adding spice late on each lap.
Joran Wyesure (Crelan-Corendon) was into the first bend at the front of the race, but was soon overtaken by Pim Ronhaar (Baloise-Glowi Lions), though it was his team mate, Belgian champion, Thibau Nys, who led over the planks, halfway round the lap.
Nys was still at the front at the end of the opening lap, the race beginning the stretch out, and a group of around 15 were in single file behind the Belgian. A bike change set him back on the second lap, though Nys remained inside the leading five, as Jente Michels (Alpecin-Deceuninck Development) led across the line at the end of lap two.
Over the planks on the third lap, British champion Cameron Mason (Seven Racing) took advantage of Ronhaar’s dismount, attacking, leading through the sand pit and taking Michels with him, the pair taking a small lead onto lap four.
Though he slipped backwards slightly, over the ensuing lap, the Scotsman split the race and was part of a group of only five as lap five began. Mason, Nys, Michels, his teammate Vanderputte and Verstrynge were eventually joined by Nieuwenhuis, the group working to build a conclusive lead.
As the race progressed, though, Nys made a move, but, as it had been all race, the sand proved his undoing. As he and Mason struggled to regain contact with the leaders, pressure from Nieuwenhuis saw gaps open, and when the Dutch rider attacked, there was no catching him.
Results
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