“I didn’t make any mistakes... Paul Seixas rode like a boss” – Benoît Cosnefroy falls short leading UAE in Pogacar’s absence at Flèche Wallonne

Benoît Cosnefroy was left reflecting on a race executed almost perfectly but ultimately decided by superior legs on the Mur de Huy, as he finished fourth at La Flèche Wallonne 2026.

Leading UAE Team Emirates - XRG in the absence of Tadej Pogacar, Cosnefroy arrived at the final climb exactly where he needed to be, but could not match the decisive acceleration of race winner Paul Seixas, crossing the line in 4th.

After a race in which UAE Team Emirates-XRG helped shape the peloton and control the build up to the finale, Cosnefroy pointed to the simple reality of Flèche Wallonne. “The team did the best job possible today. And on the final Mur, like I said in interviews before, it’s the legs that do the talking,” Cosnefroy told Cycling Pro Net.

For a moment, it looked as though the Frenchman might be in contention for victory. Positioned near the front, he felt strong deep into the climb. “Honestly, I believed in it at 400 metres to go, I was still feeling good, but it caught up with me at 200. I started to feel it getting hard, and at 150 metres I was really suffering.”

On a finish as specific and unforgiving as the Mur de Huy, that shift in sensation is decisive, and Cosnefroy was left to fight for the remaining places as others surged past.

From the outside, there appeared to be a slight lull at the base of the climb before the decisive moves were launched, but Cosnefroy rejected that interpretation. “I didn’t feel any hesitation, no. Honestly, at that moment all the teammates are on the limit and you’re just trying to find your leader, but it’s never easy.”

Instead, he pointed directly to the performance of Seixas, who proved strongest when it mattered most. “Paul rode like a boss today, he showed he was the strongest, so chapeau to him.”

Despite missing out on the podium, Cosnefroy was clear in his assessment of his own ride and left with little sense that the outcome could have been different. “Honestly, I gave my maximum, and you can’t be disappointed when you give everything. Tactically, I didn’t make any mistakes. I was exactly where I needed to be.”

Ultimately, the result came down to a simple hierarchy on the final climb. “It’s just that I was the fourth strongest today… or the third weakest, depending on how you look at it.”

For UAE Team Emirates - XRG, the race followed the expected script in many ways. The team remained visible throughout, helped control the peloton and delivered their leader into the decisive moment in contention. But in a race that is so often reduced to a single explosive effort, even near perfect execution is not always enough.

On the Mur de Huy, there was little margin for anything beyond absolute peak form, and on this occasion Cosnefroy found himself just short of the level required to turn opportunity into victory.