Mathieu Van Der Pol is reportedly the last of the "big three" cyclocross riders to wait until mid-December to resume racing and open the season.

According to Het Nieuwsblad (opens in new tab), the Dutch rider, who has been off the bike for almost a month since the end of the road season, when he finished third behind Paris-Roubaix winner Sonny Colbrelli, has a limited 10-12 race this season He is likely to participate in a limited cyclo-cross program of 10-12 races this season.

Last season, Van der Pol competed in 14 cyclocross races, winning 10 of them, after starting at the X2O Trofee Scheldecross on December 12.

He ran three rounds of the X2O Trofee, two Superprestige rounds, and four UCI World Cups before finishing the season with his fourth UCI World Championship victory in Oostende in late January.

Van der Pol will attend the Alpecin Phoenix training camp in Spain from December 1-10 before starting the cyclocross season, so the UCI World Cup round in Val di Sole on December 12 may come too The UCI World Cup round in Val di Sole on December 12 may be too early for him. Instead, the 11th World Cup round in Luxembourg, Netherlands, a week later on December 18, will be his season opener.

Van der Pol resumed training last week after overcoming back problems that plagued him late in the road season and forced him to miss the Benelux Tour and MTB World Championships. According to his physiotherapist, Dan Bombeke, he is back to full health and ready for the cyclocross season.

As for the other two riders of the "big three," Tom Pidcock (Ineos Grenadiers) will start his season at the Superprestige round in Boom on December 4. The 22-year-old British rider has been suffering from a knee injury since February He has recently returned to training after recovering from a knee injury suffered since February.

Meanwhile, Wout van Aert (Jumbo-Visma) is also expected to return to cyclocross in early December, but with a team training camp in mid-month, a showdown with Van der Poel will likely take place after Christmas.

The trio should face stiff competition upon their return to racing, with European champion Eli Iserbyt (Pauwels Sauzen-Bingoal) dominating the start of the 2021-22 season. 24-year-old Iserbyt has won three of five UCI World Cup races, and eight wins out of 12 races, including Monday's X2O Trophy opener at Koppencross. He currently leads the World Cup, X2O Trophy, and Superprestige standings.

Quinten Hermans (Tormans-Circus) and Toon Arts (Trek Baloise Lions) are the only men to have had success in the three major 'cross events. The season continues on September 7 with the UEC European Championships in Van Berg, the Netherlands.