Michael Matthews reflects on top-five finish at Amstel Gold Race: "We can be proud of the ride"
Cycling
Michael Matthews secured fifth place at the 2025 Amstel Gold
Race and offered his reflections at the finish in an interview with Cycling
Pro Net. While the Team Jayco AlUla rider just missed out on the podium, he
remained upbeat about the performance and the points gained.
"It started at like 50ks to go with attack of
Julian," Matthews explained when asked about how the race unfolded. "I
was well positioned when they attacked… yeah couldn't exactly go when they went
and it seemed a little bit early to really go that deep. And you saw Alaphilippe
blow up I think two climbs later. So yeah I think it was a good decision not to
dig as deep as I could to go with them at that time."
Commenting on Tadej Pogacar’s form, he added, "You see
the way Tadej is riding at the moment he can do everything. So… yeah, it was
definitely a strong ride from Tadej again.”
Despite the late catch and Matthews’ own strong positioning,
the chasing group couldn’t close the gap, “I guess the problem is when UAE's
got a rider there, Trek had a rider there and Quickstep had a rider there
they're all sort of messing up the chase a little bit behind.
“But yeah I think we were coming close and I was quite
confident we were going to get in touching distance and then guys would try and
jump across but it was just that little bit too far for guys to start to
launch."
On his own result, Matthews remained realistic but positive,
"Yeah I think top five is always nice in a classic. Also for a lot of
points for the team which is what we need this year when it's the points here.
So I think another big load of points today. We can be happy with that. But
obviously we came here for the podium but… yeah two spots shy. I think we can
be proud of the ride."
Fin MajorCycling Journalist
Fin Major is a UK-based writer at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2024. He is the site’s main writer for FAQs and evergreen explainers and has written around 2,000 pieces for the platform. Alongside this work, he focuses on in-depth analysis and covers the biggest races on the calendar, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España, providing clear context around performance trends, tactics, and key storylines.
In his reporting, Fin uses reputable data sources such as ProCyclingStats for results, statistics, and historical context. He places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles promptly when new, verified information becomes available. Outside of writing, Fin is an active cyclist, which supports his practical understanding of the sport and its demands.
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- provoke change, lol. this is a discussion board. nothing is going to change by what I say here. just commenting that it didn't look like MS impeded Brand. beyond that not trying to go too deep.mij09-11-2026
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