"I'm sure the people in the UCI office will have theirs set at 20°C" - Matthew Brennan highly critical of racing at over 40 degrees
CyclingMonday, 07 September 2026 at 10:34
Matthew Brennan had reasons to celebrate after stage 15 of the Vuelta a España following his teammate Wout Van Aert's victory, but the mood was anything but over the top, after having raced for two and a half hours under 40 degrees celsius.
"Well, I wouldn't do it again, but yeah, on here we have 41°C average," Brennan said in words to Cyclingnews. "So that's the average; when I was on the climb at the start, it was 44°C. At that point, you start thinking, 'what are we doing?'"
The Team Visma | Lease a Bike was active on the final day of the 15th stage, continuing to show good form but suffering in the sweltering temperatures that forced organizers to shorten significantly the stage to Córdoba.
Brennan lashes out at the UCI
However the stage was not cancelled or neutralized because of the conditions, and was still held despite the temperatures being above 40 degrees almost in its entirety.
"You know, a normal office person has to have their temperature set at 20°C or whatever, and I'm sure the people in the UCI office will have theirs set at 20°C," the Briton said, intensely.
"So when we are out there slogging away for their sake, I mean it's not great, but we do it… and that's the show we put on, but I think it wouldn't surprise me if there is a few bodies going home in an ambulance tonight with heatstroke."
Matthew Brennan is critical of racing under such conditions
Visma seeking more victories
The heat hasn't come in the way of Visma's success, with Wout Van Aert rising in form and performing better and better as the race moves on. In the final week both will have opportunities to succeed; whilst stages 16 and 17 will be pan-flat and days where the Dutch team might take Brennan to victory once more.
"Yeah, I do what I do best tomorrow, which is nothing, so I'm looking forward to that. Just lie on my bed, sleep, then the day after come up with a plan". The heat certainly won't come in the way of Visma's plans, as they aim to keep taking wins.
"I think the boys are ready; we've got a lot of motivation from what we are doing, and what stage are we on? 15, so we've picked up a third of victories – why not go for more, why not go for 6 or 7 victories. We'll see what we can do."
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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- If security and health were a problem, then yesterday should have been canceled altogether. It was 36° in Villaviciosa yesterday but 41° in Córdoba city where the race finished. As I stated where most of the race took place was on long narrow country roads with deep ditches and slopes on either side. No where to park a car or stand safely and watch. As for living somewhere else?To have cycling on my doorstep? Thank you. I also have a chalet in Alpe d'Huez, which I use in the winter mainly for skiing. But was extremely fortunate to watch Tadej Pogaćar's record breaking ascent on July 24th.RolandDekker07-09-2026
- Correction: 63000 swiss = $77,891 or 67.035 euros.PogiSloFans07-09-2026
- Janja Garnbret a year ago about Pogačar: "Tadej is considered the best cyclist in the world because of his rare combination of unmatched physical endurance, explosive power, and an all-around racing style that lets him win almost any type of event. He also has exceptional tactical intelligence and racecraft. A few months ago he said to me: In my view, cycling intelligence is simple... keep control, play smart, avoid overthinking, and ensure you have the best legs on the day."PogiSloFans07-09-2026
- Seixas, instead of doing the tdf and riding round, should've done this and he'd have won it
leedorney07-09-2026 - Haven’t seen many crowds lately and sorry but temperatures are certainly above average with 45.7 yesterday. Every degree starts to count above 36, 37 and each is a lot worse than the previous one. Security and health should definitely trump fans, especially for a free event. Should consider moving to a different part of the world if you live for cycling coming to your doorstep.Jumpyjohn06-09-2026
- Didn’t want but did and the opposite in the Vuelta, someone might have to start reviewing strategies.Jumpyjohn06-09-2026
- Hopefully with these kind of experiences, more people will start to think a bit deeper about all the exploited that have to work all day almost day in worse heat with no-one to feed or hydrate them. The deaths in the name of being on time for hosting mega sport events didn’t register on people’s consciousness very long, if at all. Is it a coincidence there’s quite a few connections between some of the sponsors in cycling and those events. Makes you wonder how much they’d be willing to pay to start a summer cycling league for has been cyclists, or is that only interesting with football?Jumpyjohn06-09-2026
- There is no right or wrong. Different strokes. He at least knows it because he allows eaxh to answer for themselves, is that what cycling wants? Obviously quite a few do because that’s how it is. Now, I’m not saying he doesn’t have a point but if you’re going to go down a path like that then how far are you willing to go? Will you also reconsider the financial inequalities and other problems precarious teams have to deal with, or the pressures they are under to survive, something none of the top tier teams really have to think about when planning a season?Jumpyjohn06-09-2026
- The number of participants is limited anyway. Before asking others to join the big races he should also be explaining who they should then be replacing who are taking part.Jumpyjohn06-09-2026
- An absolutely perfectly played out win by van Aert. The rest couldn’t attack him in any successful way and he was just that much stronger. It’s nice to see him back after that terrible 2024 crash. As fun as ever to watchRidesHills06-09-2026
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