Niels Vandeputte sprints to victory in Merksplas

After a particularly fast-paced race, Niels Vandeputte claimed victory in the Telenet Superprestige round in Merksplas. In a thrilling sprint finish, he narrowly beat Joran Wyseure, while Felipe Orts completed the podium.

Fastest off the line and fastest across the finish line: that was the story of Niels Vandeputte’s (Alpecin-Premier Tech) race. He led the opening lap, before Michael Vanthourenhout (Pauwels Sauzen – Altez Industriebouw) and Yordi Corsus (Pauwels Sauzen – Altez Industriebouw) took their turns at the front in the second and third laps. The bunch remained largely together throughout the first half of the race, with the lead changing hands several times.

The fourth lap saw a crash involving teammates Gerben Kuypers and Michael Vanthourenhout, as well as Joran Wyseure (Crelan-Corendon). Vanthourenhout was forced to abandon, while Wyseure had to fight his way back towards the front group. The lead continued to change hands, with two-time Merksplas winner Joris Nieuwenhuis (Heizomat-Cube) and local rider Wout Janssen among those making their presence felt.

Wyseure suffered another minor crash in lap six, forcing the second-placed rider in the Telenet Superprestige standings to chase once again. In the penultimate lap, Yordi Corsus made another move after a strong passage through the sand section.

Seven riders started the final lap together. Once again, the sand section proved decisive, splitting the group and shaping the outcome of the race. Vandeputte, Wyseure and Orts managed to break clear and headed into the final straight together. Vandeputte proved the fastest in the sprint to claim his first victory in Merksplas. Wyseure finished second, ahead of Orts in third.

Thanks to his runner-up finish, Wyseure takes the lead in the Telenet Superprestige standings with 52 points. He now holds an eight-point advantage over Felipe Orts and Kevin Kuhn, who are tied on 44 points.