“I’m going to struggle with him a lot in the future" - Visma's Matthew Brennan could become Great Britain's new star

Matthew Brennan is one of Team Visma | Lease a Bike's big bets and for good reason. The British sprinter has already shown himself to be one of the best in the world this year, and is also a terrific climber among his peers. Tibor del Grosso, another incredible talent in the sport, knows that he is going to face off and have big challenges against the Briton in the future.

The connection between the two came at the Volta a Catalunya earlier this year. The opening day to Sant Feliu de Guíxols promised a punchy sprint after a hilly finale. Alpecin-Deceuninck had strength in numbers and in the final descent saw del Grosso open a gap to his teammates, which was then seized. "Then I thought for a moment 'guys, what should I do now, I don't have the legs for this at all'," Del Grosso shared in an interview with Wielerevue. 

Both riders were neo-pros, and relatively unknown in the World Tour scene. Del Grosso almost took an unforgettable first pro win on the road, but in the very last meters he was overtaken by Brennan, at the time 19 years old. Brennan sprinted from behind with Del Grosso's teammate Kaden Groves in the wheel, with the difference to the rest of the field being so large that there was a huge gap built.

On that day, two stars were born, in a way. “Looking back it was so close, and maybe I could’ve done some small things differently. And then there was also that motorbike. But overall, I was mainly satisfied.” From there on Del Grosso went on to take his first pro win at the Tour of Turkey and also perform strongly in the cobbled classics and Renewi Tour.

As for Brennan he took already a full dozen pro wins, four of them at World Tour level; his first GC at the Arctic Race of Norway; leadout Olav Kooij and he himself getting leadouts from none other than Wout van Aert. The two are riders who thrive in the rolling terrain and explosive races, and are bound to meet more times throughout the coming years where a rivalry may be built. “I’m going to struggle with him a lot in the future, and so will many others... What a strong guy he is.”