With over 3000 meters of climbing and an ascent that was over 3 kilometers long at 11%, stage 1 of the
Tour de Romandie was expected to be a very open hilly day. However, it finished with a bunch sprint, and the one man that stood out from the crowd -
Matthew Brennan - fulfilled expectations, taking his third World Tour triumph at 19 years of age after he won twice at the Volta a Catalunya.
"When I came over the climb, I knew I had good legs and that I would make it to the end. The boys kept me in a very good position at the beginning, they really kept me out of trouble," Brennan said in a post-race interview. "In the final, I managed to follow the right wheels. It was very chaotic, and it was a tricky finish. I had to use a lot of gunpowder, but I had enough left for the end".
The uphill finish in Fribourg also provided an opportunity for attackers, but they did not dare. In position and with fresh legs, the Briton jumped away to a relatively comfortable victory, beating Aurélien Paret-Peintre and Artem Schmidt. "When you're fighting to keep the wheel, it's quite difficult. But I managed to keep myself in a good position. In the end I won by more than I expected, but in those moments you just have to react to the situation".
Brennan is part of the future of Visma, but at this point the present as well as he keeps bringing in the victories. "It's very special. We really wanted to achieve something in this race, and to do that here is really cool. Everyone in the team is really happy".
On paper there are no more stages that suit him, but taking into consideration the peloton's conservative behaviour this Wednesday, it could open chances for other days. "Winning another stage would of course be really cool. Hopefully I can support Jorgen [Nordhagen] in the hills. I'm really looking forward to the next few days".
He was asked about where his limits stand and although there is no certain answer, whichever answer can be given is good for both the Briton and
Team Visma | Lease a Bike. "I have no idea, even my coaches don't know, I think. We are pushing the limits, it's a really cool time," he concluded.