Seixas to the Tour? Hincapie, Bruyneel, and others can't agree: ‘You don't go to the Tour to experiment, man!’

The rise of Paul Seixas has arguably been the story of the Spring. The 19-year-old Frenchman from Decathlon CMA CGM has won or podiumed in some of the biggest Spring Classics and one-week stage races, allowing a once great cycling nation to believe again. But whether or not this generational talent can handle the pressures of the Tour de France, is a hotly debated topic in the cycling world.

Let’s look at his results in 2026 alone. He rode away from a strong field to win solo at the Faun-Ardèche Classic, having finished second to Juan Ayuso in the Algarve just the week before. He then finished second in his first ever Strade Bianche, dropping former ‘next big thing’ Isaac de Toro in the process. At the Tour of the Basque Country he seemed to win without breaking a sweat, a full 2:30 minutes ahead of Florian Lipowitz. All this before his Classics season really began.

Then came his dominant win at La Flèche Wallonne, where he showed the kind of explosive effort many commentators said he wasn’t capable of. But the crowning glory of this spectacular spring was following Tadej Pogačar on La Redoute at Liege-Bastogne-Liege. Seixas fully lived up to the hype, despite being dropped by the world champion on the final climb. The noise around Seixas’ Tour de France debut grew and grew.

George Hincapie, who has a 19-year-old of his own at home, would send Seixas to the Tour. “Yeah, I think I would. We're seeing the trend like these guys are winning the tour younger. He's got such a strong foundation that 19 years old is not what 19 years old was,” said Hincapie on The Move podcast.

“I mean, they’re so much more advanced and developed, and know their bodies much more than the kids did 10 years ago, that I think if he wants to go and his team is in need of him to go, I would send him,” he concluded.

His former race director, Johan Bruyneel, disagreed with him. “Me personally, I wouldn't send him. I would give him some time and prepare a quality team fully at his service for the Vuelta.”

Bruyneel would send Seixas to the Vuelta first, where he might also meet Pogačar. But Bruyneel is certain that a rematch with the World Champion isn’t the issue: “It doesn’t really matter. It doesn't really matter,” the Belgian said. “It's a three week race, he's never done a three-week stage race. He needs to discover that.”

When pressed on why he couldn’t make those discoveries at the Tour instead of the Vuelta, Bruyneel was clear: “You don't go to the Tour to experiment, man.” “Especially as a French phenom” Hincapie chipped in, alluding to the pressure the locals will inevitably heap on the young rider.

“They know better and he knows better how he can handle the pressure, and it looks like he can handle it pretty well. But the tour is a different game,” continued Bruyneel. “At the Tour, everything's magnified times 10, compared to anything else.”

“Three weeks in the tour is not three weeks at the Vuelta or not three weeks at the Giro,” continued the former race director. “In the tour there is no time to recover, especially in today's cycling. It's a classic every day. It's everyday a Monument almost. If I were his manager or advisor, I would advise him to do the Vuelta first, or the Giro even next year,” concluded Bruyneel.

Despite his reservations, Bruyneel sees Sexias going to the Tour in 2026. “He's French. He kind of has to go. I think the team, but especially the people, the media, they want him at the Tour. And he will be at the tour, I'm pretty confident. I personally think it would be better if he does another three-week stage race first.”

When asked if Seixas could win the Tour this year, Bruyneel was equally adamant. “No, he can't,” he said on the Podcast. If something were to happen to Pogačar, Bruyneel still believes that Seixas wouldn't win this year: “Jonas Vingegaard is going to beat him. If Jonas and Tadej are at the top of their game, Seixas can get third at the best, which would be incredible. It would prove that I'm wrong, but I think the easier way is to do another three-week stage race first. But that's not what's going to happen. He's going to go to the Tour.”

After the dust settled in Liège, post-race analysis inevitably turned to the Tour. Eurosport’s Flemish commentator, Jeroen Vanbelleghem, takes the side of Hincapie: "Everyone wants to see him at the Tour de France now, don't they?"

However, his Dutch colleague, Bobbie Traksel, winner of the 2010 Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne, disagreed: "Champions like this should only race when they are one hundred per cent at their best and can genuinely race for the win. Winning is very important to me — but Seixas at the Tour... Why not do his first Grand Tour at the Vuelta instead? By then, Pogačar will be slightly cooked, if he even goes, which isn't certain. Vingegaard is doing the Giro and the Tour,” continues Traksel.

“Maybe it's the easier route, but I believe in it more than burning him out at the Tour, " he added. “But he — and France — can barely avoid the Tour de France now. The pressure on that boy is going to be enormous."

There is still no news from Seixas or his team regarding his grand Tour choices for 2026. One thing is certain, the longer the silence continues, the more debate, argument and discussion you can expect.