Brennan tempers hype at Visma | Lease a Bike: "I'm Matthew Brennan, not Wout van Aert, but if I reach that level…"

"Impressive," Wynants said, looking back on Brennan's victory in the first stage of the Tour de Romandie. "When you win by two or three bike lengths, you can safely say that, in this group of riders, he is 'hors catégorie.' Matty controlled it perfectly as if he's been a pro for twenty years," the Belgian former rider told Het Laatste Nieuws.

But where does this young talent come from? Brennan was born and raised in Darlington (North East England) and only started his cycling career a few years ago at Stockton Wheelers before moving on as a junior to Fensham Howes-MAS Design, the team run by Tom Pidcock's father, Giles. According to Wynants, Brennan took an important step forward there. "He got used to winning a lot of races."

The British rider then joined the youth team of Visma | Lease a Bike, where Robbert de Groot had a clear goal in mind. "The initial plan was to spend two years discovering whether he could develop into a top professional. We saw potential in him for short time trials, sprints in small groups, and probably also in the classics," De Groot told Rouleur.

But the Dutchman, Head of Development for the Dutch team, was quickly convinced. He showed incredible talent during his first training camp with the WorldTour branch of the team. “Holy sh*t, is this for real?" De Groot thought immediately. "I can assure you: he blew everyone away."

And he immediately lived up to expectations by sprinting to victory in the GP Denain, alongside other impressive performances. Then Brennan received a pleasant phone call. "Matthew, will you join us for the Tour of Catalonia? You're replacing Jonas Vingegaard." To which the young British rider replied: "Hey guys, but I'm not a climber, am I?" But the Dutch team knew better: he is a real winner.

And now? The journey is still full of discoveries for the team and the rider himself, but some are already drawing comparisons with teammate Wout van Aert. "I try not to compare myself to anyone. I have my own goals. My own strengths and weaknesses. If my characteristics match those of Wout, I have a bright future ahead of me. But hey, I'm Matthew Brennan. Not Wout van Aert" concluded the talented rider with a smile.