As France prepares to say au revoir at the end of the final stage of Sunday’s final stage of the Criterium du Dauphiné to Romain Bardet, their standard-bearer in the Tour de France for the best part of a decade, it is becoming quickly acquainted with the precocious talent of 18-year-old Paul Seixas, who jumped two places up the GC in Saturday’s queen stage to Valmeinier 1800.
While it’s still far too early to anoint Seixas as a Grand Tour contender in waiting, it’s rapidly becoming clear that the teenager from Lyon is blessed with extraordinary ability and maturity. These qualities were amply demonstrated on the road to Valmeinier 1800, particularly on the final climb, where Seixas had teammate Bruno Armirail set the pace for him at the front of a yellow jersey group containing Tadej Pogačar, Jonas Vingegaard, Remco Evenepoel and several other of the peloton’s superstars.
Speaking to CyclingPro.Net at the stage finish, Seixas admitted that he’d struggled during the day but said that he was delighted with how he had stood up to the challenge of racing with the very best stage racers. “Honestly, I managed it well. It was extremely tough, both mentally and physically,” he said.
“From the first pass, it was full throttle. I didn’t feel great from the start. For the first 30 minutes, it was OK. Towards the end of the pass, I wasn’t feeling so good. I told myself that I should see how it went on the Croix de Fer. I got my legs back there when the pace slowed down a bit.”
Seixas said that his key objective on the final climb to Valmeinier 1800 was to avoid exploding completely. “I felt that I’d suffered on the previous climbs, but that’s normal and I think I managed it really well,” he said, before going on to explain why Armirail had set the pace for him there.
“The strategy was mainly for him to protect me, and then I preferred to go at my own pace, rather than at a crazy pace of Visma’s where they were going full gas. I didn’t want to give everything right away because I didn’t know if I was going to be able to hold on. In the end, it went pretty well.”
For first-year pro Seixas, every day of racing is about gaining experience, not only of rival teams and riders, but also of the climbs and conditions. He admitted that he’d struggled in the heat on the Valmeinier 1800 stage, “especially at the end. When you’re going full throttle, you feel it ten times more.”
As that experience grows, so too is his confidence. He’s risen through the GC rankings on every stage at the Dauphiné and goes into the final day looking to defend sixth place. “For sure, I’ve got a lot of confidence. The riders that I’m up against are guys I used to see on TV who are really strong, and now I've managed to stay with them and be part of the contest. I feel really proud about that.”
