Jasper Philipsen: “We can feel proud of this”

April 9 ^th 2023 - 18:28

It was clear that Wout [van Aert] and Mathieu [Van der Poel] were the strongest today. They had the best legs on the crucial parts of the race, and it was impossible for me indeed to follow them. But I also had good legs. To be 2nd while Mathieu won was a dream come true. Of course, I would like to come back and win myself, but as for today I’m going to enjoy the day.

Van der Poel is human - and a super-strong bike rider. Together with Van Aert and [Tadej] Pogacar, they are the best riders in the world. Whenever they go, you know they have something extra and that following them is nearly impossible.

We [Alpecin-Deceuninck and I] picked my racing days in order to keep me fresh for Roubaix – that’s why I didn’t take part in Flanders nor E3. We also did a very good preparation together. That’s why things went our way today. We had some good luck: we could have crashed, like Degenkolb, or punctured, like Van Aert. Are we the best team of the Classics season? Well, we can feel proud that we have won two Monuments this season, with a 1-2 in Roubaix.