INTERVIEW: "More than I've ever imagined..." - Mauro Schmid on breakthrough 2026; Paul Seixas battle; Tour de France goals

The Tour de France is perhaps the hardest stage-race to take a win in, and Mauro Schmid knows it first hand. In 2025, he came close in Toulouse, but missed out on what could've been a career-changing triumph. He returns 12 months later more confident, stronger and without less pressure as one of Team Jayco AlUla's cards for the overall classification.

Schmid's season has been highlighted by the large amount of UCI points he has gathered, fruit of consistent form and a string of strong results in a carefully crafted calendar. But he did not avoid the big classics, in which he also performed. "There's some, some nice memories there in Fleche Wallonne, it's a race that I've done a few times and I've been like mixed emotions about it," he said to CyclingUpToDate.

"Finished the top 10 also the year before, but I think it was the year before with the hail in (2024, ed.). In other years where I wasn't able to finish..." Although the Swiss rider has four wins to his name this year already, his second place behind Paul Seixas was perhaps the highlight of his season, in the eyes of many.

"I personally knew I had, I have a good punch for this kind of distance and how you also raced in the beginning of the season. I knew I can do a good result, but like sort of also from the team and maybe from the outside, it was maybe the race in the Ardennes that people expected the least something from me. So I think that also, that also helped sort of in a way, because the only pressure I had was with myself and I knew I have nothing to prove or to lose here".

The classics specialist knew exactly what he had to face, but he also learned the hard way that La Flèche Wallonne is an easy race to lose. "The year before it was really a hard last lap because UAE tried to make it super difficult (for Tadej Pogacar, ed.). Already the climbs before, and then it was actually a really small group and I was sitting in a great position and there was all like, I had like a perfect run in". However, the Swiss rider argues that because he entered the climb so well positioned on that edition, he slacked when it came to the fight for positioning into its final meters and got boxed in at a key moment.

Hence with better form, he went into the 2026 race thinking of a better result, and got it through a great performance. "Before the race, I really tried to put my tactic together and say that I really want to go for it at the bottom. And like, I rather just blow up over the top, but like just being there, especially when you go around the corner to the left and I'm just boxed in the middle. First of all, it's difficult for the head if you see everybody riding away. And then also it's like really difficult then to, to overtake again, because yeah, when you miss a little bit that moment, when everybody goes [...] this head start that they have is difficult to catch back".

The 26-year old's description of the Belgian classic was as detailed as one could expect. Schmid's insight into the climb perfectly describes it, but is not limited to it - as he has raced it on several occasions looking for a result, and knows how that is done.

"I'm maybe not crazy explosive over like a short duration, but like, I know I can pace like a really good effort for two and a half, three minutes. Yeah. And then in the race, I was, I was actually in a terrible position, it was all, it was all super hectic. So I try to not like panic too much, stay a bit in the bubble. And then also I had, I had this scenario in my head that I'm like, maybe blocked in".

Schmid moved up the group and was in contention for victory. But like what had happened with Tadej Pogacar in previous years, Paul Seixas attacked and went clear with no clear opposition. But could that have been countered? "I think in the end, when Paul went, I don't say like I could follow easily, but I had a good punch in the end. So I also regretted a little bit of not, not trying at least".

"Because, okay, I was like in fourth wheel - but when he went, everybody else was just sitting and I waited like really long to actually then go. It would have been for sure a difficult task, but I would have at least wanted to try and then maybe blow up because probably end up in second place anyway. But yeah, for me, it was a great result. And then when you saw how he was doing in the rest of the year so far, I think I can be quite proud that I got beaten by him because yeah that's quite a, a little bit like a win".

Schmid's selection for the Tour was an obvious decision for the Australian team, which has made it the full focus to aim for stage wins throughout the upcoming three weeks. "Yeah, I think for sure there's some opportunities for a classic rider. It's a bit less than maybe last year was pretty extreme, how many stages like that were in the first week. But for me, the main focus will normally be the breakaways," he confirms. "That's my big goal and big ambition this Tour de France, and I think the whole team is set up a bit like this".

The team will back up Pascal Ackermann in the bunch sprints and will have Michael Matthews and new German national champion Felix Engelhardt together with the Swiss rider who will mostly aim for the hilly days. Ben O'Connor and Luke Plapp are also cards to play in these days, although they are best fit for the mountainous stages.

"So that's our big motivation and I think we will have many good opportunities. Because also with a little bit of a mix, we have... Yeah, maybe I can be active and then try to go for a break together with Bling (Michael Matthews, ed.) in the medium mountain stages, and then we also have Plappy (Luke Plapp, ed.) and Ben [O'Connor] that can be there when it's maybe the harder mountain days. So, I think we really have a team that can be there for pretty much all the opportunities from the breakaway, and that's quite a nice setup".

But in his second Tour participation, he won't narrow down his possibilities to only a few days. "In general, maybe targeted or put down around six stages that could be really good [...] So I know pretty much on what stages I potentially want to be in the breakaway, when I see an opportunity that the break makes it to the line, even if the finish suits me or not, I want to be there because there's always a way to try to win a stage. And I don't really want to be too focused on one or two days in particular, because to get in the breakaway, it's really, really difficult in the Tour. And yeah, last year sometimes I was maybe not in the break when it was actually a good stage for me. But it is part of cycling, I guess".

"... We have, also with Ackermann for the sprints, we basically have every day we have a goal or we have a task. So yeah, we really can be looking forward to nearly all the days. And I think that is quite important also for the head, because like you always have some sort of a target, because we always want to have somebody in the break or if it's a sprint, we have Pascal. So yeah, it's just a nice way of racing and I'm quite excited for that".

But winning at the Tour is as hard of a task as any rider can tell. Last year he made it into the perfect move on the ideal day, into Toulouse on stage 11. In the final steep climbs he managed to go clear of the rest of his companions together with Jonas Abrahamsen, whilst holding off the pursuing group including Mathieu van der Poel, Wout Van Aert, Quinn Simmons and other top riders. Only in the sprint, he was beaten by the Norwegian.

"It was definitely nice to be, to be up there. I think it was good for the confidence because yeah the first couple of days I tried many times already. And yeah, like I said, some days I really targeted and said like, oh, I want to be there in this day, but maybe I wanted to be there a bit too much. And then, yeah, I was just, just really happy that I, that I made it into a break that goes to the line and then also be able to race for the stage win. But yeah, in the end, I knew I'm capable of that also because I proved it in many other races. I think it was a good learning experience last year. But yeah, in the end it didn't really change my career a lot, to be honest".

Schmid knows that he will need his best legs to take a win throughout this Tour, be it in the spectacular Grand Depart in Barcelona or in any other day. "I think for sure every cyclist wants to win a stage at the Tour de France. So it will also be this year one of the big goals of the season. Even though it's 21 opportunities but yeah in the end still everything needs to go right because everybody's preparing, trying to be 100% at this race. [...] No team takes, takes riders to the Tour that are not at 100%. So yeah, you really have the best guys in the world here. And it's not just the best guys in the world, they're also all in a great condition".

And he happily confirms that the sensations on the bike are good, just as he needs: "I really had a super good block with training camps and the Tour de Suisse - was maybe a little bit disappointed. But in general, I think my condition is really good. I had a pretty good TT in Tour de Suisse. And also then on the last stage, I made it into the breakaway on a super difficult day. And yeah, I think that just gives me a little bit the confidence that I'm also climbing well, especially for the long climbs".

Earlier this year, Schmid was second at the Tour Down Under and fourth at the Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race; won the Muscat Classic and a stage at the Tour of Oman before flying back to Europe. There, he won the final stage and overall classification at the Settimana Internazionale Coppi e Bartali.

He was, besides second at the Flèche Wallonne, also sixth at Amstel Gold Race. In the Swiss block of racing he has had since late April, the results have not been as meaningful. But he sees his season as a major success already, which relieves him of the traditional pressure.

"I think I've really nothing to lose, you know, because also for me personally, how I started this season and what I could already achieve up to this point was more than I've ever imagined from this season," he argues. "So that makes me already super happy. So now I think I have nothing to prove anymore and I can just race for myself and for the team and try to go after it".

"Maybe in other years there was more pressure building up around this Tour and you really wanted to deliver. Of course I am happy and I want to deliver, but like I don't personally feel a lot of pressure. So I think that that can mean that I can also sometimes maybe just gamble a bit or risk something in the race".