"Am I the best sprinter in the world? That's not for me to say" - Tim Merlier takes 5th win of 2025 already on stage 1 of Paris-Nice

Tim Merlier was the pre-stage favourite to take victory on the opening day of Paris-Nice 2025. Those predictions proved incredibly correct on Sunday afternoon too as the Belgian leader of Soudal - Quick-Step stormed to a dominant win in the bunch sprint in Le Perray-en-Yvelines.

"It's really nice to start like this," reflected the European champion with a beaming smile on his face when speaking to the media in his post-stage interview afterwards. "Another victory in Paris-Nice, and I'm very proud of that."

Despite some accelerations in the bunch on the final two climbs of the day, Merlier remained relatively well positioned, before timing his final sprint to perfection to see off Arnaud Demare and Alberto Dainese among others. “With about seventy kilometres to go, the peloton got very nervous. Afterwards, there were a few attacks on the hills, but after that we organized it well. We stayed well at the front and I got the perfect lead-put in the last kilometre,” analyses the first Maillot Jaune of Paris-Nice 2025 in conclusion. "Am I the best sprinter in the world? That's not for me to say, you have to decide that. I just try to do my best and win as much as possible."