Brennan applies Van Aert's Seville lesson to complete high five at Vuelta

When the Vuelta a España came to Seville two years ago, Wout van Aert opened his sprint from distance, but he was surprisingly overhauled by Pavel Bittner at the line. 

On the race’s return on Wednesday, Van Aert was in a supporting role, and his knowledge of the finale was a key factor in Visma | Lease a Bike teammate Matthew Brennan’s remarkable fifth win of this Vuelta.

Van Aert helped to pilot Brennan through the finishing straight by the banks of the Guadalquivir, dropping his teammate off on the wheel of Magnus Cort (Uno-X Mobility). From there, Brennan bided his time before unleashing a rasping sprint.

“We discussed it in the morning, and on the bits where he went wrong and we didn’t want to repeat that today,” Brennan said of the influence of Van Aert’s 2024 experience.

“We had to make sure that we crossed the line first and we did. And Wout was there by my side the whole way, so it was fantastic to see. I’m very thankful for his support.”

The victory was the fifth of Brennan’s astonishing Grand Tour debut and it was Visma’s seventh in total after Van Aert clocked up two stage wins in the second week. Their haul exceeds their previous record of six, a feat achieved on the 2022 Tour de France and this year’s Giro d’Italia.

“It’s fantastic. I mean, we’re a long way into this race now, and today was the day where we could make history in our team, we had a chance to win again,” Brennan said. 

“The team did exactly like we spoke about before, we pulled full-on, and we did everything in our power to make the best of this opportunity and to come across the line with seven victories now. This is the most we've ever won as the team in a Grand Tour and to be a part of that is really special.” 

The Vuelta features a time trial and back-to-back summit finishes in the next three days, but Brennan might have a chance to add to his haul on the final stage in Granada on Sunday.

“It’s crazy, and we’re not even on stage 21 yet...” Brennan said of his five stage wins. “It’s incredible, but I feel like I just do the easy part. The guys are working so hard all day and they’re always here to support you, so I'm very grateful for that.”