Mathieu Van der Pol, looking to add a Paris-Roubaix victory to his two Tour of Flanders titles, finished ninth in the 5.5-hour race on the velodrome.

The Dutchman, who entered the race as the favorite among the 175 starters, finished 2:34 behind winner Dylan Van Baar (Ineos Grenadiers).

Van der Pol joined an elite group of 12 when Jumbo Visma accelerated in Orchies with 54km to go, and then responded to numerous attacks and counterattacks in the finale. However, there was no decisive move by the Alpecin Phoenix riders themselves, and they were forced to chase in the last kilometer after the podium trio of Van Barre, Wout Van Aert, and Stefan Küng had broken away.

"It was a bit of a struggle and not the race I had hoped for, but it was also a special race.

"We already had two special races. The team did a great job. I think the team did a great job.

Van der Pol had Ineos Grenadier leading the peloton in a crosswind early in the race, with him, Van Aert, and Küng on the defensive.

At Allenberg, the pack was once again united and overcame the first major challenge of the day. But while the punctures and crashes that were so common in the peloton were avoided, Van der Pol said he did not have the legs to fight for the eventual victory.

"It was a bit of a strange race. When the pack split early on, I didn't really like it because I felt like I was riding at full throttle in a crosswind. I didn't panic. I knew I would come back," van der Pol said.

"Eventually I got back in the race, but I didn't have the legs I was hoping for. I responded to a couple of attacks, but I wasn't going to keep doing that. But I think I fought on well."

Despite the disappointment of ending the spring far from the top spots on the cobblestones, van der Pol said he was happy with the way things had gone over the past month.

He returned to racing surprisingly quickly in Milan-San Remo after a long rehab from a lingering back problem, before stage wins in the Settimana Coppi e Bartali and thrilling race wins in the Dwar de Hländeren and Tour of Flanders. He finished third.

"Realism prevailed," van der Pol said. I'm very happy with my spring, especially with my victory at De Ronde. Now I'm going to rest for a few days."