Former Classics star Tom Boonen claimed that despite Jumbo-Visma's Wout Van Aert winning multiple stages and three major one-day races in the Tour de France, he "could have done better" in 2022.

Van Aert took the green jersey and three stage wins in the 2022 Tour de France. He performed admirably over very different terrain, from the hills of northern France to the time trial on the third weekend. He also provided important support to Jumbo-Visma teammate Jonas Vingegaard in his quest for his first Tour de France victory, leading him to victory.

He won the E3 Saxo Bank Classic and Omloop Het Nieuwsblad in the spring, the Bretagne Classic in the summer, and two stages at the Criterium du Dauphiné and one stage from Paris to Nice.

However, Boonen told the Belgian daily Het Laatste Nieuws this week, "I've heard that I didn't do any better this year, but I disagree."

"They say the only thing missing this year was monuments. But it's also everything else. Athletes at his level are running to win races like that."

Boonen acknowledged Van Aert's misfortune, having suffered COVID-19 before the Tour of Flanders and not being able to race there. Van Aert then competed in Paris-Roubaix, where he finished second, and Liège-Bastogne-Liège, where he finished third.

"I don't want to be too harsh," Boonen said in the same Het Laatste Nieuws interview. 'He had a great spring, but he went down with COVID at a crucial time.'

This fall, Boonen made the same assurance when discussing what the relationship between Van Aert and Remco Evenpoel (Quick Step Alphavinil) will look like after Evenpoel wins his first world championship in Belgium in a decade.

"Evenpoel set a serious precedent. Last year in Leuven, Belgian teammates Evenpoel and Van Aert were at loggerheads at their hometown world championships. But the pecking order was clear: Wout was the leader, Lemko still his servant. Then, in 2022, everything changed.

Boonen argued that although the two men with the rainbow jersey in their hands may cross paths, "they often need each other in the future."

As for the Classics issue, Van Aert has won Milan-San Remo but has yet to win the Monument of the North, and Boonen argued that it is not necessarily time for the Jumbo-Visma racer, who will turn 29 next year.

As for the multiple Tour de Flanders and Paris-Roubaix winner himself, Boonen said, "Definitely, the clock is ticking. I am sure he will still succeed, but will he be able to win the Ronde three times and Roubaix four times?