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Stage Racing

Paul Seixas Obliterates Field in Itzulia Basque Country Opening Time Trial to Claim First WorldTour Victory

CYCLING LOOKOUT • 6 APRIL 2026

Paul Seixas announced himself on the WorldTour stage in the most emphatic fashion imaginable on Monday, obliterating an elite field to win the opening time trial of the Itzulia Basque Country in Bilbao. The 20-year-old Frenchman, riding for Decathlon–AG2R La Mondiale, dismantled a 13.9-kilometre course that combined a steep opening climb over the Alto de Santo Domingo, technical descending through the Bilbao streets, and a punishing uphill finish — and he did it with a margin that left seasoned Grand Tour contenders shaking their heads in disbelief.

Primož Roglič had set the benchmark that looked, for a long time, unassailable. The Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe veteran produced a characteristically powerful ride, his metronomic pedalling through the technical sections a masterclass in time-trial execution. Kévin Vauquelin slotted into second at 23 seconds, while Ilan Van Wilder delivered one of the most complete performances of his career to finish fourth at 29 seconds. But Seixas, starting among the last riders, destroyed every split. By the summit of Santo Domingo he was already ahead of Roglič's pace, and on the final run to the finish line in Bilbao he simply rode away from every time on the board.

It is a result that confirms what the French cycling establishment has suspected for the better part of two years: Seixas is not merely a talented prospect — he is a generational rider whose ceiling may yet be defined only by his own ambition. His time-trialling ability has been evident since his junior days, but to produce a performance of this magnitude against a field that included Roglič, Isaac del Toro, Juan Ayuso and Ben Healy elevates this from a promising result to a statement of intent. The race for Seixas's signature beyond 2027 — already the subject of intense speculation involving Visma-Lease a Bike, UAE Team Emirates-XRG and several other superteams — will only intensify after today.

For the GC battle, the implications are significant. Seixas takes the leader's jersey into Tuesday's mountain stage from Pamplona to Lekunberri, with Roglič his closest rival on the general classification. Del Toro, the pre-race favourite who arrived in the Basque Country chasing a third WorldTour stage-race title of the season, lost more time than he would have liked and will need to attack early in the mountains to claw back the deficit. Ayuso, riding his first race as sole leader for Lidl-Trek since his transfer, was competitive but will know that the climbing stages ahead suit his profile better than the opening test against the clock.

The 13.9km course was deceptively demanding. The Alto de Santo Domingo, positioned within the first three kilometres, immediately split the field into those who could climb at threshold and those who could not. The descent through Bilbao's city streets demanded bike-handling precision at speed, and the final two kilometres rose gently enough to reward raw power but steeply enough to penalise anyone who had misjudged their effort on the opening climb. It was, in short, a course that rewarded the complete rider — and Seixas proved himself exactly that.

The French rider's programme beyond the Itzulia points towards a Tour de France debut in July, where he is expected to ride in support of his team's GC ambitions while being given freedom on selected stages. If he continues to produce performances like today's, the question of how long he remains in a supporting role will become impossible to ignore. For now, though, the Basque Country belongs to Seixas — and the mountains that follow will tell us whether this was a one-day wonder or the start of something historic.

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