Heinrich Haussler on the cobbled classics: "It doesn’t come down to the strongest guy on the day"
Cycling
One of the most experienced riders in the peloton Heinrich Haussler has talked about his ambitions for this year, and how he reflects on the last season aswell as some periods of his career.
In an interview by CyclingTips, the Australian veteran has talked about the classics season he's had last season, more specifically about Paris-Roubaix where his teammate Sonny Colbrelli won on a mythical day: “I heard it over the radio and almost cried myself. It was an amazing experience I will never forget and I want to create again in the future. It’s not like buying a bunch of guys and expect them to gel. It’s pretty hard to create a bunch of friends.”
“Sprints and Classics have changed completely in the last 15 years. It doesn’t come down to the strongest guy on the day. There is luck involved, there is more tactics, bikes, tire pressure, you name it. I want the younger guys to use their brains too. You don’t necessarily have to be the strongest guy but if you have a good group of guys [working as a team] almost anything is possible," he added.
The 37-year old is one of the most experienced riders in the peloton, he has witnessed the rise and retirement of both Tom Boonen and Fabian Cancellara, the ever-dominant era of Quick-Step and the rise of ultra talents like Peter Sagan, Wout van Aert and Mathieu van der Poel. Despite all this, he is still capable of performing at the highest level, having finished tenth in last year's Paris-Roubaix.
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Some of it may be due to Cyclocross, which he started riding in the last few years and has been able to be a rather frequent in the circuit: “Cyclocross happened by mistake. A friend of mine Sascha Weber did cyclocross when he was younger. He asked to me to join him in a small regional race close to where we live [in Freiburg, southern Germany]. It was straight after the Vuelta that I just finished. I said ‘Nah mate, I am 36, I am not going to do that’."
To wrap it off Haussler has shared one of the dreams he has for this year specifically: “So, one personal goal this year would be to put on an Australian jersey representing Australia in Wollongong. That would be an absolute highlight of my career. "
Heinrich Haussler will once again, if all goes according to plan, race the cobbled classics campaign this season, where he will be riding with Sonny Colbrelli and Matej Mohorič to try and replicate last season's success.
Rúben SilvaEditor-in-Chief
A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
Beyond editorial work, he has been closely involved in the expansion and coordination of CyclingUpToDate’s wider network, helping establish and support sister platforms across multiple languages. This includes ongoing collaboration with CiclismoAlDia (Spanish), CiclismoAtual (Portuguese), WielrennenUpToDate (Dutch), and RadsportAktuell (German), contributing to a shared editorial vision and consistent international coverage.
He also helps oversee editorial governance across the network, setting standards for accuracy and consistency and coordinating updates or corrections when needed.
Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
Within 18 months of launch, he helped grow CyclingUpToDate’s English-language platform into one of the most-read cycling news websites, built entirely from the ground up. As both a professional journalist and lifelong cycling enthusiast, his focus remains on delivering accurate, timely, and well-contextualized coverage.
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- yeah... you're right...PogiSloFans04-11-2026
- Podcast sounds great. Two so called experts stating the f*cking obvious.wrsty04-11-2026
- A mindset that reminds me of Tim Declerq. I loved watching that guy just pound away the kilometers, hours at the front, holding an entire breakaway in check on his own. Bjerg seems like a similar guy. Curling, the team sport.RidesHills04-11-2026
- He will be lol, but he can still win on the climbs hahaawp04-11-2026
- I would love to have his inconsistency. How many wins this year? 2 TdF stages, a WC, a Euro championship, San Sebastian, multiple wins early year. Monument podiums. I'd take it. I don't think he has a chance in the TdF, but he is still amazing.mij04-11-2026
- He's not going to win the TdF. Maybe if they make every single stage a TT he could win. But I still believe Tadej would just sharpen his TT skills and win.mij04-11-2026
- You beat me to it. Should he make a full recovery (likely) and go light early in the year. One, two, three. Don't ask me, I don't give a damn. Should he be on a Feel-Like-He's-Fixin'-to-Die High.Yepperoni04-11-2026
- The deciding factor may be the (TBD) number of (any type of) kilometers without Pogacar.Yepperoni04-11-2026
- Unexplained chronic fatigue is an all too common bitch. The hard to find definitive answer may lie buried in gut mechanisms. A mystery of the deep.Yepperoni04-11-2026
- It's weird to say Evenepoel would be making a "serious mistake by adding the 2027 Giro d'Italia to his calendar, warning that such a decision could even be interpreted as a lack of confidence in his ability to win the Tour de France." It may well be a mistake but with so many commentators (of all sorts) continuously claiming almost everything Remco does as being a mistake, almost nobody should care what the pundits and the disparagers should say. His team may not want him to do the Giro, and that matters. But it's possibly or probably up to Remco to decide and it may not have to be decided on until a month or so ahead of the race. Yes , Remco is inconsistent much like the majority of the best riders but he's enjoying a period of not having been recently injured (or sick). Whatever he does he need not be concerned with critics who will second guess any perceived failure no matter what. I suspect he will have enough other races on his schedule so he won't be considering it. But the worst reason to not race it is because of what some will say - humorous that be.Yepperoni04-11-2026
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