Seixas credits Decathlon teammates after Itzulia queen stage win - 'I'm happy to be living this incredible experience with them'

Paul Seixas (Decathlon CMA CGM) has highlighted the strength of his Decathlon teammates as well as crediting Florian Lipowitz's (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) strength after the German pushed him all the way on the queen stage at Itzulia Basque Country on Friday.

As has been the case in the previous stages, Seixas took control of the race on the Izua climb with 29km remaining, launching a seated acceleration which only Lipowitz could follow. 

With Primož Roglič (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) not too far behind the duo, Seixas wanted to keep the pace high and understood his German companion’s reluctance to cooperate at times.

“Well, at first I wasn’t expecting him [Lipowitz] to take pulls, which is normal. There was Roglič behind, so that made sense to me. Then I saw that he started working with me, which really helped. I was able to recover my legs a bit,” Seixas told CyclingPro.net at the finish. 

“We worked well together, honestly, he was very strong. Today, hats off to all the guys. It was a really beautiful race and very tough. Everyone was strong; it was impressive," said Seixas, who managed to outsprint Lipowitz at the finish in Eibar.

Seixas was well flanked by Matthew Riccitello (Decathlon CMA CGM) and Nicolas Prodhomme (Decathlon CMA CGM) in the valley roads before he attacked on the Izua climb with 29km to go. The Frenchman paid credit to the work of his Decathlon teammates across the opening five stages and the spirit within the camp.

“It’s amazing, honestly. The team has huge motivation. We’re all super happy, and the guys are giving 200 per cent for me. We’re also a group of friends, and that’s what’s beautiful about cycling,” explained Seixas.

“I’m really happy to be living this incredible experience with them. They truly deserve that I go and get this victory. Today, this win is for them.”

With one stage remaining, Seixas holds a strong lead of 2:30 over Lipowitz, while Roglič sits in third at 3:40. The final stage, the shortest of the race, features six categorised climbs and looks set to have the added challenging element of rain.

"Tomorrow will be a different stage, for sure. It’s shorter, so it will be more intense, especially with the rain. I think we’ll try to race from the front to keep the pace very high and avoid trouble in the technical sections," said Seixas.

All week, Seixas has illustrated his confidence in his bike-handling skills, and the Frenchman’s self-belief won’t be dented by any adverse weather.

“I know I handle my bike well, whether it’s wet or dry. Actually, it’s thanks to cyclocross that I’m able to ride well in those conditions,” said Seixas. "So yeah, I think I handle the bike well, and tomorrow should be fine. We just need to stay focused until the end.”

If Seixas is to seal the GC on Saturday, the 19-year-old will become the youngest male winner of a WorldTour stage race, surpassing Tadej Pogačar, who won the Tour of California in 2019 at 20 years old. Additionally, he could break the drought since the last French winner of a WorldTour stage race, dating back to 2007, when Christophe Moreau won the Critérium du Dauphiné.