CX Heat Check Power Rankings 12.3.20
Hello cyclocross friends! The CX season is starting to hot up, which means there is no better time to kick-off the first print, or more accurately non-video, version of the CX Heat Check Power Rankings. Here at The Bulletin we believe one of our jobs is to take all of the fancy statistics we've collected and to curate the numbers into an easily digestible output. And there is no more digestible meal than a double-helping of power rankings. The Heat Check ranks the top 11 men and top 11 women in cyclocross to figure out who's on the rise and who needs to step up their game. You can check out the most recent video version of the Heat Check, here. Those rankings were output after Koppenbergcross, which means the latest rankings will take into consideration performances at the European Cyclocross Championships, Niel, Leuven, Merksplas, Kortrijk and Tabor. That's a super-sized meal.
Before we dive in, it’s come to our attention that we use a lot of nicknames and shorthand that may not make sense to our newer readers, so let’s clear up some of the big ones:
SAUCES: This refers collectively to the Pauwels-Sauzen B!NGOAL cycling team. The men’s team is a dominant force in cyclocross, right now, much like the Spice Girls were a dominant force in the late 1990s. For this reason, I have given prominent members of the Sauces a Spice Girl identity: Eli Iserbyt (Sporty Sauce), Laurens Sweeck (Ginger Sauce), Michael Vanthourenhout (Scary Sauce), Ryan Kamp (Posh Sauce), Toon Vanderbosch (Baby Sauce).
LIONS: The Telenet Baloise team run by Sven Nys and featuring Lucinda Brand, Toon Aerts and Lars van der Haar, has taken on the look and feel of a professional sports team. And to be a professional sports team, you need a nickname and a mascot. Telenet Baloise have gone with “Lions.” So when we refer to Sauces versus Lions, you now know the two teams we are talking about.
HENS or CONTAINERS: These both refer to the Hens Maes CX Team featuring Daan Soete and Tom Meeusen. We can’t wait until there’s a pre-game race between the Hens, Lions and Sauces mascots, similar to the presidents at Nationals games.
PRIME TIME: Ceylin del Carmen Alvarado podiumed at U23 MTB Worlds on October 10 and then won the SuperPrestige race in Gieten the next day, October 11. We like to compare this impressive feat to the time Deion Sanders played in an NFL game in Miami, Florida, and then flew to Pittsburgh to suit up for a Major League Baseball game on the same day. Coincidentally, Deion’s double took place exactly 28 years to the day from Ceylin’s version. Deion Sanders’ nickname is Prime Time. And, now, Ceylin’s is, too.
HEAT CHECK: The heat check started in basketball. Let’s say you hit a few shots and think you’ve got a hot hand. So then you start taking ridiculous shots (long range or with two defenders in your face) to see if those also will go in. That’s the heat check. If the shots continue to fall despite the degree of difficult, you know you’re hot. Think you have good legs on the bike? Attack on lap one and see if you can make it stick. That’s the cyclocross heat check equivalent.
TOPPER: In Dutch a “topper” is a winner. Mathieu van der Poel or Marianne Vos are ultimate toppers.
SUBTOPPER: For CXHAIRS purposes, a subtopper is a competitor who needs everything to fall into place to get that win. They could be a favorite but not THE favorite.
MIDDLER: Riders in the second group who strive to be in the front group and one day land on the podium.
PONY CAMPS: Sanne Cant, to illustrate on social media that things don’t always go as planned said “het leven is geen ponykamp.” Loosely translated it’s “life isn’t always a pony camp.” We love the idea of a pony camp and want to go to such a place often. Keep dreaming of pony camps, friends.
WOUTMAS: The week in which Wout van Aert makes his annual triumphant return to cyclocross. See also Pidderpalooza (for Tom Pidcock’s return) and Saint van der Poel day. I’m not sure about that last one. We’re still workshopping it.
DENISE BETSEMA: Not really a name people are unfamiliar with, but one that always gets a strong response every time she’s mentioned. If you’re not sure why, here’s the quick run down (you can always Google for more): Betsema tested positive twice, in early 2019, for a banned anabolic steroid. She claimed the substance was part of a contaminated supplement provided to her by a Belgian pharmacist and that she had no idea she had ingested it. A normal suspension for a similar positive test is four years. Betsema surprised everyone by showing up and racing at Zonnebeke on January 25, 2020. UCI released a statement basically saying “the case was resolved by acceptance of consequences in accordance with the WADA code.” Betsema maintained she “never intended to use doping” and claimed she was innocent. She received a six-month backdated suspension from April 2019 to October 2019. For those unfamiliar with the cyclocross calendar, this is a time period when cyclocross races are not happening. For all intents and purposes, she served the suspension during the offseason. Our journalistic take on Betsema is that we will talk about her because she’s racing and her participation affects the race. Our editorial take on Betsema is that we don’t think she should be racing, competitors are responsible for what goes into their bodies no matter the intention, and the ban was not close to long enough.
For the Power Rankings, the number in parentheses is their ranking in the previous edition. Okay, enough preamble let’s get to it.
WOMEN TOP 11
11. PERRINE CLAUZEL: For our 11th pick in the power rankings you need to throw the results out the door and remember the whole concept of a heat check because Clauzel is the embodiment of the ethos. Think you're feeling good? Then attack and keep going! Maybe it will work, maybe it won't but Clauzel is always game and that earns her the eleven spot.
10. FEM VAN EMPEL: This is the debut on the Heat Check for the 18 year old Pauwels Sauzen B!NGOAL phenom and former soccer star. A 6th place in a stacked U23 field at Euro Champs was a nice placing. But it was the top 10 finish at Niel, followed by 8th at Leuven and an out-of-this-world fifth at the X20 Trofee Kortrijk race that cemented her a spot in the power rankings.
9. (11) PUCK PIETERSE: She moves up two spots on the power rankings after winning the U23 gold at Euro Champs and finishing a strong ninth place at Merksplas. She topped off the run with an impressive sixth place at Tabor, mixing in with the subtopper hopefuls for most of the race.
8. SANNE CANT: The Champ has taken more than her fair share of criticism for her slow start to the season. Sanne Cant deserves better than that. She probably deserves better than 8th on the Heat Check, but that's the pony camp she's corralled in for this week.
7. MANON BAKKER: Seventh at Niel, Merksplas, and Kortrijk, it's only fitting that “Wheels” Bakker is seventh in the power rankings. She is always near the front, and before long is going to have that breakout race that puts her on the podium.
6. KATA BLANKA VAS: The Hungarian superstar has been so impressive that Sporza commentator and former world champion, Paul Herygers even "joked" that Belgium should naturalize Vas so she could ride for them. An 8th place at Niel and 7th at Leuven were great results for the 19 year old star, but it was the fourth place finish at the Tabor World Cup that solidified her Heat Check bonafides.
5. (4) YARA KASTELIJN: Kastelijn has had an up and down season. Fighting for the win one week and out of contention the next. A fourth at Niel and third at Kortrijk show her potential but an eighth at Euros and tenth at Tabor show she still has some work to do before moving up in the Heat Check. For this week, she drops one spot to fifth.
4. (1) ANNEMARIE WORST: A threat for the win every time she lines up, putting a tenner on Worst would've been a smart play. At least it would’ve been before November. She hasn't won since KoppenbergCross and hasn't been on the podium since Euro Champs. Some bad luck with crashes and mechanicals has put her out of contention in a few races, but the Heat Check is agnostic when it comes to luck and right now, Worst has lost a little of that winning mojo. And with that mojo also goes the top step in the power rankings as Worst suffers a big drop from first to fourth.
3. (7) DENISE BETSEMA: She doesn't have the top end to sprint against Alvarado, Worst or Brand, but she has the technical skills to be a threat. A slew of seconds and a third at the World Cup gets her on the podium.
2. (2) CEYLIN DEL CARMEN ALVARADO: Prime Time has gone from looking unbeatable, to winning races on less than her best form. She made sure that the only way we will see the Euro Champ jersey is for her to lose the rainbow stripes in February. She also had a nice win at Leuven. But for the past three races, she has had faced a Brand problem she is unable to solve. And for that reason, Alvarado remains in the second spot on the power rankings.
1. (3) LUCINDA BRAND: The Dutch Dangler has revamped her tactics recently and is no longer hanging out mid-pack before making a late race surge to the front. For the past several races, she has taken the cyclocross bull by the horns and pushed the pace from the start. The result has been a string of wins including Merksplas, Kortrijk and World Cup Tabor, which makes it really easy to place her as the top Lion and at the top of the CX Heat Check Power Rankings.
Falling out of the power rankings: Inge van der Heijden, Aniek van Alphen, Maghalie Rochette, Laura Verdonschot, Eva Lechner.
MEN TOP 11
11. NIELS VANDEPUTTE: Ceylin's and Mathieu's teammate has been vandeputting in the work lately. Eighth places at Leuven and Merksplas and a tenth at Kortijk earns the 20-year-old Belgian a call up to the show.
10. (10) RYAN KAMP: Posh Sauce has been left out of the Pauwels Sauzen drama happening in front of him, but he's been quietly putting in the work. A win at U23 Euro Champs, eighth at Niel and sixth at Urban Cross are good results that keep The People’s Kamp at tenth.
9. (5) QUINTEN HERMANS: Much like Clauzel, “Q” is a Heat Check specialist, always sniffing out the front of the race. One day soon he's going to make it stick. For now, a solid fifth at Urban Cross and seventh in Tabor has Q still in the power rankings but falling from fifth to ninth.
8. (7) DAAN SOETE: Daan Corleone ... Daan Juaan ... Daan ‘Dick Whitman’ Draper ... Daan the Maan has been all over the map. Sixth at Euro Champs, Ninth at Niel and Merksplas and eighth at Tabor. We thought he would be sniffing out the podium after a strong start to the season, but for now Daan is in a power rankings lull and fall one spot to eighth.
7. (8) CORNÉ VAN KESSEL: The other half of the Q and Corné Tormans Wonder Twins, van Kessel is on the rise. Fifth at Niel and Merksplas and sixth at Tabor, van Kessel is another guy we are waiting patiently to break out. There's nothing we would like more than to see the Tormans Twins stir up the Sauces and Lions battle at the front.
6. (3) LARS VAN DER HAAR: LvdH is having his best season in some time. Is he back? Did he ever go away? A third place at Euro Champs, fourth at Niel, and second at Kortrijk led to murmurs that Lars might be vying for top Lion on the men’s side. It’s still debatable whether Lars has moved into subtopper territory or if just making it on the podium is the limit. Laurens Sweeck’s and Michael Vanthourenhout’s recent success coupled with Wout’s return makes it tough for a once resurging Lars to keep going higher. And for this reason, Lars loses 3 spots on the power rankings.
5. WOUT VAN AERT: With a pair of third place finishes in his return to the sport, you’re probably thinking we’re being a little harsh slotting Wout into fifth. It is Woutmas, after all, why is the Heat Check playing the Grinch? Because we need to see more than two races before moving Wout up any higher. These other guys have been busting their tails for twelve races to catch the eye of the Heat Check selection committee, you can’t just waltz in here and expect to be anointed a topper! (Bookmark this sentence for when van der Poel returns to see how fast I can backpedal). In any case, it’s a great story and builds the narrative by giving the Flanderian of the year a little room to grow. For now, all van Aert is getting in his Woutmas stocking is a Wide Angle Podium.
4. (2) TOON AERTS: It’s been a struggle for last year’s World Cup overall winner. After a couple wins early, Toon has been searching to regain the mojo. Having to battle more sauces than a Friday night at Olive Garden, Toon has looked a little off his game lately. His best finish was a second place at Leuven, three races ago. Since that time he has lost to Eli, Laurens and Mike V.
3. (6) LAURENS SWEECK: Ginger Sauce is on a tear. The original subtopper is showing once and for all he is elite. Or is he? After winning Niel and Leuven, Ginger was third at Merksplas and out of the top ten at Kortrijk and Tabor. A scary mishap at the planks took him out of contention at the World Cup, and we’re hoping it’s more bad luck than fleeting form that has Sweeck off the podium. For now we’re giving him the benefit of the doubt.
2. (1) ELI ISERBYT: Sporty Sauce has been the most dominant racer this season. But that was before his fellow Sauces started testing his dominance. His only recent win came at the expense of his teammate, Michael Vanthourenhout, flatted and gave up a commanding lead. The Euro Champs victory is a big feather in his helmet, but that seems like ages ago and until he can keep the other sauces in order, and establish himself back on the top of the pecking order, returning to the top of the power rankings may be a weekly struggle.
1. (4) MICHAEL VANTHOURENHOUT: Scary Sauce has done it! Mikey V tops the CX Heat Check Power Rankings with a heat check for the ages at Tabor. He was the consummate wingman all year long and his career has been a slow burn since showing promise (in the promises) as a junior. But he sent a huge message to his team at Tabor by wearing down Iserbyt and taking a convincing win. Couple that with his win at Merksplas and near miss at Kortrijk and there just may be a new pecking order on the Pauwels Sauzen B!NGOAL bus. Even if that’s still TBD, their certainly is a new hierarchy in the power rankings and Mikey V is on the top.
Van der-piphany? Van der Poeler equinox?
This is just more fraudulent fake news from the big CX media. You guys know the only results that count are the actual results on Van der Poelling day!