Mathieu van der Pol admits that he will have to change his racing style, suggesting that brilliant long-distance runs such as last year's attack in Coure Brussel-Coulomb may be a thing of the past.

The Dutchman's approach has been more cautious this spring, especially in the Tour de Flanders, where he withstood the onslaught of Tadej Pogachar.

Van der Pol told Sporza (opens in new tab), "Palmares is becoming increasingly important. 'Silly' attacks like the long solo in last year's Coulée Brussel Coulée are fun, but they could cost you the victory."

"If I had run smart, I could have won that race. But the way I raced brought me a lot. If I had been smart, I might not have won other races. But now the level is so high that I can hardly do stupid races. So I get punished for it."

A lingering back injury delayed Van der Pol's start to the road season until Milan-San Remo, but he quickly picked up speed, finishing third in the Via Roma and winning the Settimana Coppi e Bartali stage.

In the Tour of Flanders, he took a breathtaking victory at the Doire de Flanderen and won his second Ronde in a head-to-head battle with Pogachar. The Alpecin Phoenix rider finished his classic campaign with a fourth place in the Amstel Gold Race and a ninth place in Paris-Roubaix.

Van der Pol said he has enjoyed racing more since returning from injury.

"It's something to work on for the rest of my career, but I think I'm stronger," he said. It's true what they say about riders not realizing how much they enjoy cycling until they get injured. I really enjoy cycling and training. For the past few years I have been living from race to race, with very few training periods. I loved that, but now I can see that sometimes it's good to take a break."

Van der Pol will not race again until the Giro d'Italia, which starts May 6 in Budapest, and is looking to return to the Tour de France, where he wore the yellow jersey last year.

"I want to do well in the Giro and the Tour, and then I want to focus on the world championships," van der Pol said.