19-year-old British rider Matthew Brennan secured his first WorldTour victory on Monday during the opening stage of the Volta a Catalunya, extending his winning streak to four consecutive races.
Brennan, racing for Visma-Lease a Bike, caught lone escapee Tibor del Grosso (Alpecin-Deceuninck) just meters from the finish line on a challenging uphill section in Sant Feliu de Guíxols. He then held off the fast-charging Kaden Groves, another Alpecin-Deceuninck sprinter, to take the win.
The Darlington native’s victory marked the fourth win in a row, following his triumphs with Visma’s development squad and his victory at the GP de Denain last Thursday with the senior team.
“The weather made it quite tricky today,” Brennan reflected in a post-race interview. “We did everything we could to stay near the front and minimize any losses. As we approached the finish, we knew the coast road would be crucial, and I managed to get into position with some help from my teammates.”
He continued, “From there, we just had to go full gas. It was a tough situation to manage, but I’m so happy with the result. A huge thanks to everyone who supported me.”
Brennan added that he had watched a similar stage from last year’s race and had a sense that the situation would play out again, noting, “When Alpecin went off the front, I knew it was a repeat of last year. You just have to take responsibility and manage the race, and we ended up with the best possible outcome.”
Groves, who was part of the chase, explained that del Grosso’s solo attack was unexpected but added, “He had the speed on the descent, but in the end, he ran out of legs—and so did I. Brennan was super strong and managed to ride me off his wheel.”
Around 2km from the finish, del Grosso broke away, with Brennan quickly following. Despite a large gap—still 80 meters at 500m to go—Brennan launched a powerful sprint in the final moments, passing del Grosso and securing a dramatic victory.
“I couldn’t have asked for a better season,” Brennan said after his victory in Denain last week. “And now, it’s just gotten even better.”
The British rider will wear the leader’s jersey heading into Tuesday’s stage, which includes a category-one climb and a relatively flat run-in.
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