Merckx competed in hundreds of races, entering a full season of competitions during the European cycling season of February 1 through October 1 every year. Merckx won a staggering total of 476 races over his professional career, 54 of them in 1971 alone. He once raced for 54 days in a row and sometimes entered two races in a single day. He entered multi-day endurance tests, single-day races, mountain bike races, and short track races with equal enthusiasm.
Never considered the strongest or most technically gifted cyclist on the European circuit, Merckx amassed his impressive record partly through a sheer competitive drive that led his opponents to bestow upon him the nickname “the Cannibal.”