Our photo gallery of the best racing moments in professional cycling starts at the beginning of January at traditional cyclocross races in Herentals and Koksijde in Belgiumwhere the super all-rounders Wout van Aert (Jumbo-Visma), Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Deceuninck) and Tom Pidcock (Ineos Grenadiers) battled it out several times over the course of a few days. The Dutchman van der Poel was partly slowed down by back problems and the British cyclo-cross world champion was mostly unable to keep up with the horrendous pace of his two rivals.
Tour Down Under 2023: WorldTour kick-off in Australia
Both the men and women kicked off the 2023 WorldTour season in Australia at the Tour Down Under. In the men's Tour of Australia, Australian UAE Team Emirates pro Jay Vine on his first tour Down Under the overall victory. Vine triumphed ahead of Simon Yates and Pello Bilbao. The overall classification of the three-day Women's Tour Down Under 2023 went to Grace Brown (FDJ-SUEZ).
Cyclocross World Cup Benidorm: The final battle of the big three
The UCI Cyclocross World Cup in Benidorm, Spain, on 22 January saw the final clash between the big three. For the last time in the 2022/23 cyclocross season, it was Wout van Aert against Mathieu van der Poel against Tom Pidcock, who will not be competing in the 2023 UCI Cross World Championships in Hoogerheide. In front of thousands of Spanish spectators, the race was extremely fast and exciting. In the end, Mathieu van der Poel won in the final sprint ahead of van Aert. Tom Pidcock ended his cross winter season with a fifth place.
On 25 January, the Mallorca Challenge 2023 with the Trofeo Calvia. The winner was former road world champion Rui Costa, who has been riding for the Intermarché-Circus-Wanty team since this season. There are four more one-day races on the Balearic island until 29 January.
