Danny van Poppel has finished second at the Dutch national championships in Hoogerheide. After the attack of Team LottoNL-Jumbo had stranded at three kilometres from the finish, he had to acknowledge his superior in Mathieu van der Poel at the Brabantse Wal. Timo Roosen finished in fourth place.

The championship over 221 kilometres was a very tough race due to the challenging course and the hot conditions. Bert-Jan Lindeman was in the early breakaway for Team LottoNL-Jumbo, which got a maximum of ten minutes. After the leading group had been caught in the last fifty kilometres, Van Poppel first attacked with amongst others Van der Poel, after which he went for it solo in the last ten kilometres.

“Unfortunately, I didn’t win. However, I was really good today. Today, I raced the way I like it the most: offensively. In that role I got the chance to go for the title. I finished second, but only the victory counts”, Van Poppel said. “There was some confusion in the final. I was in the breakaway and I thought that Dylan was in the peloton still. So I went solo in the last ten kilometres. When I was taken back, I started my sprint a bit too far from the back. As a team, we’ve ridden a good race. We controlled it, but the strongest won today.”

Sports-director Addy Engels concurred with Van Poppel. He‘d seen a very strong team nevertheless. “We controlled the race all the time, but that’s no guarantee, of course. It all looked good for a long time with Bert-Jan in the early breakaway, and then with Danny. We were actually well-represented everywhere. But it’s a fair conclusion that the best rider won today. That’s a pity, but I’d rather lose a race this way than through bad luck or a stupidity.”