Wout Van Aert put his Grand Prix Cycliste de Montréal second place trophy in his suitcase as he prepared to leave Canada for Australia for the UCI Road World Championships.

The Belgian was fourth in Friday's Grand Prix Cycliste de Quebec, but lost to Tadey Pogachar (UAE Team Emirates) in Montreal. The two races were held on different courses, but the course was very similar to the one in Wollongong on September 25.

Since returning to racing in the Bremer Cyclassics after the Tour de France, Van Aert has finished second, first in the Bretagne Classic, and fourth and second in Canada.

"I think my legs are getting better," he said. I really like these races and it was great to experience the cheering of the Canadian fans along the way. I think it's a great format to have the circuit."

"It was two different races. Montreal is a long climb and Quebec is an explosive race. It was nice to race here

"Today's race was really hard. The long climb was about survival. I made it up the climb, but I also self-destructed there. Taddei was stronger in the sprint."

Van Aert joined and survived an attack by Adam Yates (Ineos Grenadier) and David Gaudoux (Groupama-FDJ) on the final 12.2km lap around the Parc Mont-Royal.

He managed to end the race with a five-man sprint and was the favorite to win, but Pogacar beat him on the 500m climb to the finish and the final drag to the finish line.

"It flattens out a bit towards the line, but the 500 meters before that is really steep," Van Aert noted.

"I think everyone was a little hesitant in the sprint. Gordie made an early move and I was steering Taddei. But at the moment I was supposed to pass him, I had nothing left, I had to beat Bazioli in the bike throw to get second place.

Van Aert, who has won on a variety of tracks during the 2022 season, has always been the favorite and his Jumbo Visma team was expected to control the race once again. In the final, the yellow and black jerseys led the pack, sealing the attack and setting up Van Aert.

"It's no different than any other race this year. It's always the same going into a race. There are advantages and disadvantages," Van Aert explained.

"I'm very proud of our run. I want to give a special mention to Tobias Foss. He worked hard in Quebec and had a difficult year, but he proved that he has great talent.

Van Aert will fly business class from Montreal to Sydney via Los Angeles on Monday in order to have enough time to recover and adapt before the UCI Road World Championships (elite men's road race) in Wollongong in two weeks.

Pogachar, like many others, will obviously be a threat. However, Van Aert expects the Wollongong course to suit him and that the Belgian team will be strong no matter how the race unfolds.

"The climbs at Wollongong are a bit short, especially on the final local circuit," he notes.

"With a small group like today, it would be just me and Lemko who could be there. If it was a big group, we have a strong team and we could be there with the rest of the players."

Van Aert shares the leadership of the Belgian team with Vuelta a España winner Remco Evenpoel. After a disagreement last year when Evenpoel did not follow team orders, Van Aert opted for a more diplomatic and unified approach this year.

"I'm confident we have a strong team, and having two cards is a big advantage," said Van Art, offering a branch of peace as Jumbo Visma heads to Australia and Evenpoel celebrates his Vuelta victory in Spain.