Michael Matthews demands apology from Nathan Van Hooydonck: "It certainly wasn't okay, I hope he knows what he did wrong"

Team Jayco AlUla's Michael Matthews has revealed he is still awaiting the apology he believes he deserves following a contentious incident with Nathan Van Hooydonck at Paris-Nice.

The matter in question occurred as the race neared an intermediate sprint where bonus seconds were on offer alongside sprint points. As Van Hooydonck tried his best to prevent Tadej Pogacar being the man to take the spoils, he inadvertently made contact with Matthews, something the Australian did not appreciate.

"This is not what we want to show on television. To young children and people in general who watch cycling. It certainly wasn't okay, I hope he knows what he did wrong and won't do it again," Matthews told Het Nieuwsblad. "Fortunately, I can steer quite well and if it wasn't in the peloton, you would have seen a domino effect."

“I think he said something on the internet, like he apologized, but I'm still waiting for that. I would appreciate that," he continues. “If you can always get away with excuses, then this will happen. We have to show respect to each other as riders. A light contact is always possible, but this was really unnecessary. I, unexpectedly, flew to the other side of the road."