"I thought he was bluffing" – 19-year-old Paul Seixas cracks Matteo Jorgenson in commanding Faun-Ardeche Classic solo

Paul Seixas did not begin the 2026 Faun-Ardeche Classic intending to ride alone for more than 40 kilometres. The plan was controlled aggression, numbers in support, and collaboration after the selection. The solo only became real when he realised the rider beside him was not fully committing.

"I had incredible legs. I settled into a rhythm that suited me on the climb, and I could always push again," recalled Seixas in post-race quotes collected by Le Gruppetto.

"We had planned to have three to five riders on my wheel to collaborate afterwards," Seixas added. "I did not really believe in a solo raid unless it was a very great day."

That assessment came before the decisive moment. What changed was the behaviour of the man next to him. "Jorgenson was not taking many turns. At first, I thought he was bluffing."

The two were at the front when the break was caught, and the race finally split among the favourites. On paper, it was a balance of power: a 19-year-old French prospect alongside the Team Visma | Lease a Bike leader and one of the peloton’s most established stage racers.

Seixas felt something different. "On the flatter section I took most of the pulls but I did not go full gas."

He was measuring. Not panicking. Not overextending.

Then the road tilted upward. "On the steeper part I accelerated again. I kept my effort going and decided to try the solo raid."

That was the point of separation.

The initial gap was small. Ten seconds. The type of margin that invites cooperation behind. Instead, the chase faltered. Jorgenson slipped back into the group that had been formed by the acceleration. The hesitation Seixas sensed was not theatre.

What followed was not an impulsive move from a teenager riding on instinct. It was a controlled escalation from a rider who understood both his sensations and the dynamics around him.

He had the legs to commit. He had the awareness to recognise vulnerability. And once he chose to go, he did not half commit.

The gap grew beyond a minute. The race fractured into layers behind him. The solo stopped being a gamble and became a statement.

Seixas had said he would only believe in a long raid on a very great day. In Guilherand-Granges, he found one and used it to drop one of the sport’s biggest names not through brute force alone, but through clarity.

At 19 years old, that might be the most significant part of all.