Mathieu van der Poel said on Wednesday he will skip this year's world road race championships in favor of a tilt at the mountain bike world crown.

The world road championships are scheduled for Rwanda in late September, while the mountain bike equivalent is two weeks earlier in Crans Montana, Switzerland.

"I'd have no chance of winning out in Rwanda," the powerfully built 30-year-old Dutch rider told reporters.

Targeting Mountain Bike Glory

Celebrated for his all-in style of racing, fearless Van Der Poel won the 2023 world road race and last week claimed the cyclo-cross world title after attacking and leading from the gun.

This decision sets up a potential face-off with British maverick Tom Pidcock, the double defending Olympic mountain bike cross-country champion.

Preparing For A Packed Season

Van Der Poel will start his season with a stage race from March 10-16 at Italy's Tirreno-Adriatico, rather than Paris-Nice, which he described as the "ideal preparation" for the ultra-long one-day race and his first major objective, Milan-San Remo on March 22.

He will then defend one-day cycling’s holy grail, the Tour of Flanders, followed by the brutal cobbles of Paris-Roubaix in early April.

Tour De France Ambitions

The unmissable Tour de France is once again on his program in July. Van Der Poel has played a key role in helping his Alpecin-Deceuninck teammate Jasper Philipsen secure nine stage wins over the past three years.

"I'd like a stage win," Van Der Poel said. "There will be opportunities for both myself and Jasper Philipsen."