Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Deceuninck) admitted he could feel Thibau Nys (Baloise Glowi Lions) breathing down his neck in Gavere, as the Belgian pressed him hard before a late mistake decided the race.
Van der Poel took his fifth consecutive victory of the winter on Friday, completing nine laps of the frozen, technical course in 1:03:15. His winning margin was 21 seconds, but that gap only opened on the seventh lap when Nys twice slipped a foot from his pedal on a decisive climb.
"I didn't think it was possible to drop him," Van der Poel said after the finish. "I just saw he made a mistake in the wheel and then I had the gap."
He later added: "You can see that the gaps don't get very big. So, I gambled on one fast lap in the hope that it would be enough."
The world champion rode conservatively in the opening half of the race, sitting in Nys's wheel as the 22-year-old forced the pace. Nys attacked from the start, and the pair quickly distanced the rest of the field.
On the fifth and sixth laps Nys repeatedly tried to unseat Van der Poel on the climbs and technical descents. Van der Poel later acknowledged he was not in full control of the duel at that point, suggesting that simply riding away from Nys by force was not an option on the rapid Gavere circuit.
The key moment came on lap seven on the main climb. Nys hit a hole, his right foot unclipped, and as he tried to accelerate again his foot slipped a second time. Van der Poel immediately seized the opening, accelerating clear while Nys fought to clip back in.
"I just didn't want to have any regrets after the race," Nys said of his attacks. "I did my own thing and I felt immediately that Mathieu was not giving in and quite comfortable. I did what I had to do.
Speaking of his technical error, Nys said, "I unclipped my pedal two times which cost me some seconds and some momentum to keep it going." However, despite his form throughout the race he didn't believe he had the ability to beat Van der Poel on today's course. "Anyway I don't think I could have followed him," he said.
Van der Poel revealed he had opted to remove his gloves for better bike handling despite the low temperatures. "I do not really like riding with gloves, I did not get the right feeling for steering," he said, adding that the choice helped him pick different, faster lines once he was alone in front.
Behind the leading pair, Tibor Del Grosso (Alpecin-Deceuninck) won a tight sprint for third at 23 seconds, continuing the Dutchman's progression within Van der Poel's set-up.
The Gavere result further tightens the World Cup standings, although Van der Poel indicated he is unlikely to alter his programme to chase the overall classification. Asked if he might add Dendermonde on Sunday, he replied: "A plan is there to be changed, but normally not."
Cover image credit: Alex Whitehead/SWpix.com
