“Why were you guys trying to blow the race up?” – Chris Horner questions Visma tactics despite Matthew Brennan’s second Vuelta win
CyclingThursday, 27 August 2026 at 15:15
Matthew Brennan claimed his second victory from the first two sprint opportunities of his Grand Tour career on Stage 5 of the 2026 Vuelta a Espana, once again finishing the work of Wout van Aert and Christophe Laporte in Roquetes.
The final result looked emphatic, but the route Team Visma | Lease a Bike took to get there left Chris Horner unconvinced. The 2013 Vuelta winner praised the decisive lead-out while questioning why Visma had spent so much energy in the crosswinds and covering attacks when they already possessed the strongest sprint combination in the race.
“Visma look like knuckleheads”
Visma helped force the pace with more than 100 kilometres remaining as the peloton encountered crosswinds, with Van Aert, Laporte and Brennan all contributing near the front. Lidl-Trek also committed Mads Pedersen, while protecting Mattias Skjelmose. The peloton briefly split, but no major GC contender was caught out and the groups soon returned.
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With the route heading away from the exposed coastline and towards more sheltered, rolling terrain, Horner saw little prospect of the early pressure producing lasting damage. “I’m thinking Mads looks like a knucklehead, Team Visma | Lease a Bike look like knuckleheads and I can’t understand what’s happening,” he said during his post-stage analysis on The Butterfly Effect. “This is a perfect stage for a Classics-type sprinter because there are no pure sprinters.”
Brennan had already won the uphill finish into Manosque on Stage 2, while Van Aert and Laporte gave Visma two further options capable of surviving the late Puerto de Paüls. For Horner, those strengths gave the team every reason to conserve energy and trust the sprint.
“If you have the best lead-out team and you’re the best sprinter, why were you guys trying to blow the race up?” he asked. “You don’t have to blow the race up if you have the best lead-out team and you have the best two lead-out guys. We’re talking Wout van Aert and Christophe Laporte and the best sprinter.”
Pedersen was eventually dropped on the Puerto de Paüls after his earlier work for Skjelmose. Kaden Groves also lost contact, leaving Brennan as the outstanding sprint favourite in a reduced front group.
Brennan has two wins already at the 2026 Vuelta a Espana
Horner warns Van Aert against splitting the team
Visma’s numerical and sprint advantage was established by the top of the climb, but Van Aert and Laporte were then used to respond to attacks from Xabier Mikel Azparren during the final 15 kilometres.
Horner understood the logic of sending Van Aert across to a lone attacker and refusing to contribute. His concern was that a larger move could develop while Visma’s strongest riders were separated, leaving Brennan and the remaining teammates with more work to control.
“Why leave your teammates? Your teammates as a whole can control everything,” he said. “In the peloton, you still have teammates back there. Sepp Kuss is riding for GC, but you can call on him in emergency situations. Then, of course, you have Jorgen Nordhagen and Ben Tulett back there, along with your other two sprinters. Stay together.”
UAE Team Emirates – XRG also contributed to closing the moves, allowing Visma to regroup before the final 10 kilometres. Tulett and Nordhagen subsequently returned to the front and helped position the same riders who had been working in the wind much earlier. “Next time, when you go to the front, if you’re Wout van Aert, don’t try to blow up your team,” Horner said.
Referring to Nordhagen’s role, he added: “Don’t wreck his legs. Keep his legs fresh so that he can control the peloton at the finish of the stage to bring you guys deeper in the finish like we saw on today’s stage.”
Brennan completes another dominant lead-out
Despite Horner’s concerns, Visma reached the decisive kilometre with their preferred combination intact. Van Aert drove the reduced peloton before Laporte took over with Brennan positioned directly behind.
Brennan’s rear wheel briefly slipped on painted road markings through the final bend. Laporte looked back, recognised that his sprinter had lost momentum and prolonged his effort until Brennan was securely back on the wheel.
The 21-year-old launched with approximately 175 metres remaining and immediately opened a gap over Jordi Meeus. Vincenzo Albanese finished third, while Brennan had enough of an advantage to begin sitting up before the line.
Horner described Laporte as a “magical lead-out man” and agreed with Brennan’s assessment that Visma possessed the best lead-out in the world for this type of finish. That superiority remained the foundation of his criticism: the team did not need to make the stage more difficult to create a winning position.
“There’s no reason to blow it up in the crosswinds,” Horner said. “It wasn’t going to happen on today’s stage because there wasn’t enough wind. Why hurt your teammates?”
Brennan became the youngest rider to win multiple Vuelta stages since Tadej Pogacar in 2019, while Visma maintained their perfect record across the first two stages suited to their sprint group.
Kieran WoodDeputy Editor-in-Chief
Kieran Wood is a sports journalist based in Wales and has been active in journalism since 2022. He regularly contributes to DartsNews.com and CyclingUpToDate.com, where he covers professional cycling and darts. In cycling, his work includes liveblogs from major races, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España, alongside race reports and analysis. He has also conducted interviews with professional riders.
His reporting spans the full racing calendar, from one-day classics to stage races, with a focus on accurate, real-time coverage and clear contextual analysis. For statistics, results, and historical context, he regularly uses resources such as ProCyclingStats. To support reporting on rider activity and training context where relevant, he also references Strava.
In his work, Kieran places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles as new, verified information becomes available.
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