"We're paid to win bike races" - Michael Matthews doesn't share anti-UAE sentiment at the Tour de France
CyclingThursday, 16 July 2026 at 12:49
The 2026 Tour de France has been thus far dominated by UAE Team Emirates - XRG, who have won four out of eleven stages; but have also helped control stage 9 in which their ambitions weren't overly obvious - which at the time, earned the most criticism. Michael Matthews doesn't share that sentiment and explains his point of view.
Matthews on the rise but struggling in historically fast Tour
The Australian suffered major injuries this spring, breaking both wrists in a crash that threatened his summer campaign. However, Matthews rode both the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes and the Tour de Suisse ahead of the Tour de France to build form.
"From where I've come from to where I am now is obviously a blessing in disguise, but when you're here, you always want more," Matthews shared in words to Cyclingnews.
"A lot of work went into getting back to the shape I'm in, so hopefully I'll get a chance for all that work that I've done to get to this point to pay off. It's been a rollercoaster so far, but there are still some stages to go."
The lack of racing this season is perhaps the reason why the Team Jayco AlUla leader has not been as consistent as in previous years. Before Auvergne, he only had four days of racing in January.
The brutal pace of the race (this Wednesday's stage was the fastest ever road stage at the Tour) and the extreme heat on the daily has also been making recovery difficult to manage, which he is feeling.
"It's just not having that racing. When you're pushing your body every day above the limit to what it's used to training at or racing at, then obviously the recovery is not so good, and you're just sort of bashing yourself down every single day".
Hence, a race of survival for the former green jersey. "So there have been some good days, but unfortunately, probably more bad days than good so far."
Read also
Matthews was 11th on the breakaway stage that ended in Foix on the fourth day of the race; but on stage 9 to Ussel he was seventh; beaten by Filippo Ganna and Mads Pedersen in the peloton but showing not only a good sprint but also climbing level to survive the peloton's hellish rhythm.
The team's hopes, with no GC rider present, are to win a stage from a breakaway. "We've been trying every day but obviously when UAE are riding like they are, it' s difficult, and then the sprint stages are very controlled. There haven't been that many stages for me so far," he admits. Without many explosive hilly stages, the task will be difficult for the 35-year old.
"It's the Tour de France, you don't get to choose which stages they plan for you, so you've got to just take what comes".
"A lot of the stages, unfortunately, that are going to suit me somewhat are going to be from the breakaway, and it's not always guaranteed that you make the breakaway. So you've just got to try and try again on every stage basically, and just see what comes up."
Michael Matthews at stage 4 of the 2026 Tour de France
If Matthews was in UAE's position...
Not many have been vocal, but according to Movistar sports director José Joaquín Rojas, the majority of the peloton is critical of UAE's controlling behaviour at the Tour. In the rest day, UAE riders Florian Vermeersch and Tim Wellens defended the team's actions.
Matthews shares the sentiment that the team is doing what they feel is right with their available firepower and race situation. "I don't think it really changes much. I mean, when UAE are riding like they are and they're in such amazing shape, they're always going to keep riding for the stage wins that do suit them, obviously," the veteran responded.
If Jayco had the same ability as UAE, they would most likely race in the same way, Matthews argues. "100%, I think any team in their situation would be doing the same thing. We're here to win bike races, we're paid to win bike races, and that's what our sponsors want, for us to win as much as possible".
At the end of the day it is also the Tour de France, where exposure is at its best, and winning a stage is only possible to some of the best in the world. The best riders and teams will work hard to capture any win, so as to boost the team's exposure and team morale. With a stage win record looming on the horizon, UAE could work towards controlling more stages in favour of the Slovenian.
"They don't necessarily care that the peloton or other people are unhappy that you're winning a lot," Matthews argued before asking rhetorically, "So if you've got the resources to do it, why not," he concluded.
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.
claps 0visitors 0
Just in
Popular news
Latest comments
- Why sad? This is a sport, not a drama movie. And your prediction is about 2x too small ;-) I have always been annoyed by “unwritten rules” like “do not attack in the feed zone” and others - where riders who rely on those unwritten rules complain -> true champions win. There is only one rule again: whoever crosses the finish line first wins!averagecyclist16-07-2026
- of course the years after his crash and lack of success are one thing, but what did i miss? where does the article say anything about froome trying to benefit financially now from his last crash in august 2025?Ketterechts16-07-2026
- Wow... so on next year's TdF, UAE should only follow others, never take the initiative or the lead, Tadej should never win stages during the 3 weeks, just ride enough to be second place no matter who is in first place, and then on the last mountain stage go full gas just to prove to anyone that he and his team can do it and win it like that. The other teams will be satisfied, right?Lobz7716-07-2026
- Thats a sad modern attitude. Fair chance your not 25 yet.whit2pet16-07-2026
- Really sad that after what 6 years he is now trying to milk the injury for money. He scammed Israel Prem Tech for millions where he could not even win a UK 4rh cat race. Find it sad that such a great rider reduced to this.paultryan200216-07-2026
- Its known as courtesy not rules, tradition not laws.abstractengineer16-07-2026
- nobody dispute the accident even though it was largely due to him even after Poels had warned him. The problem is sticking to the false narrative that he was capable of winning the tdf for 5 years, the numbers were close etc even when he was getting dropped midway in races , trying to mislead everybodyabstractengineer16-07-2026
- He got lucky with Vuelta, TDF is a blood bath, even Jonas lost 2:30 in a stageabstractengineer16-07-2026
- The unwritten rule is probably to go for the win or not, not in between like UAE did. They pulled hard, keeping it in range, in order to sprint with Torito. Then they switched to the energy saving mode and got Ineos and Lidl-Trek to pull. What that effectively means is that they are helping the peloton against the breakaway without wanting to go for the win themselves, which is unsportsmanly. One theory is that Pogačar would have wanted to follow van der Poel, his eternal rival, but realised it wasn't worth it as he'd drag all the GC riders with him and spend his teammates. So he wanted to let van der Poel know that he could have been present in the fight for the win.
Rafionain-Glas16-07-2026 - There certainly are unwritten rules that should and are respected. However going for the win when when it's a fair fight ain't one of them..IMO. Hope Pog gets the win record, he already gifted one to a his team mate.Santiago16-07-2026
Loading
Write a comment