Adam Blythe wants Wout van Aert to become one of 'the lads' with Mathieu van der Poel, Tadej Pogacar - 'They're more against him'
By Ben Southby
Published 18/04/2025 at 21:24 GMT+1
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Wout van Aert has struggled on the cobbles this year, and Adam Blythe thinks he knows why. The Visma-Lease a Bike rider finished fourth at both Paris-Roubaix and Flanders, and Blythe believes the reason for it could be because he feels left out, while Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Deceuninck) and Tadej Pogacar (UAE Emirates-XRG) are "more against him than wanting to ride with him".
‘Doesn’t have the friends he needs’ – Van Aert is a ‘little outsider’ in peloton, claims Blythe
Video credit: TNT Sports
Adam Blythe feels Wout van Aert (Visma-Lease a Bike) could be missing out because he is not one of "the lads" alongside the likes of Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Deceuninck) and Tadej Pogacar (UAE Emirates-XRG).
The Belgian did not have a cobbled classics campaign to remember, as he finished fourth at both Paris-Roubaix and Flanders.
Van der Poel claimed success in the former, while Pogacar triumphed in the latter.
Speaking to TNT Sports, Blythe gets the feeling that Van der Poel and Pogacar are "more against" Van Aert than with him, while the 30-year-old could benefit from stronger relations in the peloton.
"For me, he's like a little outsider," Blythe told the Ultimate Cycling Show.
"He just doesn't seem to have the friends that he needs in the peloton. He's respected, but for me, he hasn't got that camaraderie with the other riders that you kind of need in a way.
"From my experience of bike racing, if you're in a break - which granted, I wasn't in many breakaways - but the ones that I were in heading into the finish, you'll be able to chat to other riders, you'll be able to talk to them.
"Watching Paris-Roubaix, Flanders, Mathieu [van der Poel] would talk, Mads [Pedersen] would talk, Tadej [Pogacar] would talk, but they'd all talk together. And then you'd have Wout on the side of that.
"I think those little chats, they might be something simple. Whatever it is, Wout's not involved in that and if you're seeing that chat happen, you're like, 'What are they talking about? They're ganging up on me,' sort of thing.
"So just on my side of things, I'd like to see him, and it's a ridiculous way of putting it, but more of the lads thing within it a little bit more. They're more against him than wanting to ride with him."
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Jayco AlUla rider Luke Durbridge joined the Ultimate Cycling Show panel on TNT Sports and gave his thoughts on the situation.
"It's like there are three brothers, there's Wout, Van der Poel and Tadej," he said.
"There are two brothers ganging up on one. When they get out there, I even find it amazing with Tadej and Van der Poel, they literally are mates, but then they're beating each other up, but then afterwards it's like, 'Bro, we're family'."
Blythe added: "Mathieu is fine with them two, it's not a tactical thing ever with them two, it's just the strongest man can win, completely.
"I think the Wout thing, he has to win tactically now rather than just the strongest man wins, because he's not there.
"I think the other two will ride him out of it on legs like they did in Flanders a little bit, rather than work with him and use him a little bit.
"They'd rather see him almost drop because he can't keep up, and then those two will fight it out."
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