Matthew Brennan was not meant to ride Paris-Roubaix this year. According to his early season calendar, he was due to be away with Visma-Lease a Bike’s development squad, continuing to grow his skills as a bike rider. Only twice before had he raced more than 200km in a day. At 19 years old, just months into his first year as a pro, Roubaix would be a step too far, surely?
The answer, it turned out, was a resounding no. On a late call-up to his first Monument, Brennan tore up the script, riding in the company of Mathieu van der Poel and Tadej Pogačar at the front of the race.
He ultimately placed 44th – less than nine minutes behind the Dutch winner – in an impressive showing for the youngest rider at the race.
“I think to be in the position I was, when you’re left with 20 guys and you look around and they’re the best guys in the peloton, maybe you’ve done something right up until that point,” Brennan said.
“After that, unfortunately the parachutes came out a little bit, and I couldn’t continue at the pace that they were going. That’s part of the game. I’m still young. To be in that position is really quite a confidence-booster for the future.”
The teenager’s instructions at the start of the day were to support his team leader, Wout van Aert, and “see how far I could get”, he explained. If everything went smoothly, Brennan would take the reins at the spiky end of the afternoon, and help set the finale for the Belgian.
“Wout maybe struggled on some of the sectors early on,” the teenager said. “I felt a little bit better, and he told me to go for my own opportunity, which was really nice.
"Unfortunately, a couple of kilometres down the road, I didn't feel great, and I just said, 'I can't go anymore' and to look after himself.
“I think this is the furthest ride I’ve actually ever done [ed - This year’s Paris-Roubaix was 259.2km]. To be able to do that and race is something different… that last hour is always a killer. Especially on a course like this, it just never ends until the finish line.”
Alone, the Brit charged into the velodrome to rapturous applause. It is a memory he will now keep for the rest of his career, which just four months in, already counts three victories, including two at WorldTour level.
“All the way in was special,” he said of the race's closing moments. Afterwards, as riders around him finished their slogs, Brennan stood on the grass of Roubaix Velodrome, taking in the day. He then staggered slowly towards the journalists.
He had raced aggressively for almost six hours. How did he feel? “The legs don’t feel too bad,” he said. “I think you just kind of run out of bullets. You run out of that explosivity. I think I’m just generally tired. If you weren’t, then you’re a weirdo.”
Still only 19 years old, there will be many more Paris-Roubaixs for Brennan.
