SAITAMA (Japan) — Cycling prodigy Paul Seixas ended his spectacular breakout year with another win in Japan on Sunday, finishing ahead of world champion Brandon McNulty in the Tour de France’s Saitama Criterium.
The 20-year-old Frenchman this year became the youngest winner of the Giro di Lombardia and finished fourth in his debut Tour de France.
He won his first World Tour level events at the week-long Tour of the Basque Country and the Fleche Wallonne one-day classic.
He topped the podium again in Japan after reeling in American McNulty in another assured performance.
“I’m really satisfied, it ends the season well,” said Seixas.
“The strategy was good; it was to attack on lap 14. I did it, after that I caught Brandon and that was it.”
Seixas, who only turned 20 in September, became the fourth-youngest winner of one of cycling’s prestigious Monument one-day classics with his Lombardia victory.
That was more than two years younger than Tour de France king Tadej Pogacar and Olympic champion Remco Evenepoel when they won Liege-Bastogne-Liege in 2021 and 2022 respectively.
When asked how he deals with his new-found fame, he said: “I don’t mind”.
“I have my own pressure and I deal with it,” he said according to AFP.
McNulty broke clear with a late attack but Seixas hit back to overtake him with just under 3km to go.
Norway’s Torstein Traen finished third.
McNulty is ending a season that saw him become the first American in 33 years to win the men’s road race world title.
The 28-year-old said “it wasn’t to be” after his late attack on Seixas.
“My overall strategy was to save for the last few laps and then try to go a little bit early and surprise them,” he said.
“They were a bit stronger, or Paul was.”
