'He wanted to put him in his place' - EF Education-EasyPost DS on Pogacar's response to Seixas hype
Tadej Pogačar made the decisive move at Liège–Bastogne–Liège on La Redoute, distancing everyone but one rider: Paul Seixas. According to Matti Breschel, the Danish sports director at EF Education–EasyPost, the Slovenian was determined to make a statement.
In the days leading up to Liège-Bastogne-Liège, Paul Seixas dominated the headlines. Especially after his victory at La Flèche Wallonne, the key question was how far the young Frenchman could go in La Doyenne.
Speaking to Feltet.dk, Breschel, felt it was clear that Tadej Pogačar wanted to make a statement.
“It was like he wanted to put him in his place,” he said. “Not just win the race, but show the young guy who the world champion is.”
Breschel suggested the Slovenian may not have appreciated the shift in attention. “Everyone had been talking about Seixas before the race, and everyone was forced to talk about him. There wasn’t a single rider who could go through the mixed zone without getting questions about Seixas. So in a way, I think it irritated Pogačar.”
On La Redoute, Tadej Pogačar made his move after a lead out from Benoît Cosnefroy, and in the end only Paul Seixas was able to follow. The pair climbed the iconic Ardennes ascent in a record time of 3:45, some 13 seconds faster than last year, averaging a staggering 8.7 W/kg.
For Matti Breschel, it came as a surprise that the young Frenchman could hold the wheel. “That was surprising,” Breschel said. “That he could stay with him on La Redoute. That was completely crazy. I didn’t expect that.”
The race was decided later, on Roche aux Fauchons, where Seixas finally had to let go. Pogačar rode on to take the win, while the performance behind him only added to the growing attention around the French talent.
“Now we can’t avoid talking about him,” Breschel said. “He’s here to stay. That kind of talent doesn’t lie. We don’t know how good he can become yet. But we haven’t seen the top of his level.”
After the race, Breschel gained further insight when speaking with his rider Alex Baudin, who knows Seixas well.
“He said that for every month over the winter, he improved by 20 watts. That’s incredible.”
From that perspective, and given the progress Paul Seixas is showing, the question becomes even more intriguing: will he line up at the Tour de France this summer for another showdown with Tadej Pogačar?
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