Joris Nieuwenhuis (Ridley) powered away from Michael Vanthourenhout (Pauwels Sauzen-Altez Industriebouw) inside of four laps to go to solo to victory at X2O Trofee Rapencross on Sunday, in Lokeren and claim his second victory of the 2025-26 cyclocross season.
Although Nieuwenhuis made a minor slip in a corner during the final laps – his only mistake of the race – the Dutch rider had ample time to recover and still crossed the line 48 seconds ahead of his nearest rival. Second-place finisher Vanthourenhout has placed on the podium in all six cyclocross races he has completed this season.
Niels Vandeputte (Alpecin-Deceuninck Development Team) pulled away from a five-rider chase group in the ninth and final lap to take third, a further 10 seconds behind.
“Actually, I also felt quite in control before that [pulling away], but I just couldn't pass the riders, and I just had to be patient. And then when I finally got in the front, then I could do my own pace and do a stable, high pace. And then I rode away,” Nieuwenhuis said.
"Yesterday, you start to doubt a bit and see guys pulling away for minutes. Then I'm glad I can turn things around. This helps with my confidence. I've been training a lot on the sand in Middelkerke, so I hope that will help," he added, according to WielerFlits.
Koppenbergcross winner Thibau Nys (Baloise Glowi Lions) had a day that he would rather forget. After changing bikes multiple times in the early laps, hitting his bars in frustration and losing time, he then went down twice, going over the bars in the sand section and overcooking a corner. Ultimately, the European and Belgian champion finished 15th, 3:37 back.
Nys, who was leading the X2O Trofee – where time and not points are counted – after his win on Saturday, stopped for a few seconds, looking at the clock, before crossing the finish line. Nieuwenhuis now leads the eight-event series ahead of Flandriencross on November 16, 2025.
Winning the race was even sweeter for the 29-year-old as he admits that his “goal is to win a classification.”
“And to be honest, yesterday, I was already doubting, of course, because I lost like three minutes,” Nieuwenhuis added before he knew that he was leading the series. “So I was like, okay, the classification is almost over, but today, I don't know what it is at the moment, but I think I'm a bit more back than I thought I would be.”
Vandeputte was the first to take the front, putting Saturday’s issue with a pedal slip at the start of the race, which cost him valuable positions. The field lined up behind him as they tackled the technical course, with deep runs in the sand pit, the Mont Henri climb, and slippery corners with tree roots.
One lap in, Vandeputte and Vanthourenhout on his wheel had a slight gap to a big group with Nys, who had a slow start, trying to move up.
But disaster struck for Nys on the third lap, when he was forced to undergo two bike changes. The first time out of the pit, he hit his bars in frustration, and the second time, he stopped to adjust his left lever. And that was the start of a bad day for the 22-year-old Belgian.
Meanwhile, at the front of the race, Vanthourenhout had a small gap by the start of the fourth lap with Nieuwenhuis, who would join him to make it a lead duo. Behind them, Vandeputte was leading the chase group, which included Toon Aerts (Deschacht-Hens-CX Team), Jente Michels (Alpecin-Deceuninck Development Team) and the Crelan-Corendon duo of Laurens Sweeck and Emil Verstrynge.
Vandeputte used his technical skills to connect briefly with the lead duo, but with three laps to go, Nieuwenhuis was in complete control off the front, while Vanthourenhout was chasing solo, 19 seconds back. Vandeputte was back in the second group, now locked in a battle for third place.
