Updated September 10, 2026 04:17AM<\/p>\n
Tadej Poga\u010dar<\/a> is sidelined, the rainbow jersey is suddenly up for grabs, and a half the peloton can sense the opening<\/a>.<\/p>\n That\u2019s the mood heading into the big block of Canadian racing that includes this weekend\u2019s Grand Prix Cyclistes de Qu\u00e9bec and Montr\u00e9al<\/a> and the UCI road cycling world championships<\/a> later this month.<\/p>\n Paul Seixas<\/a> \u2014 who turns 20 on September 20 \u2014 might be first in line in a peloton full of dreamers to fill the Pogi void.<\/p>\n The French phenom returns to competition Friday at the GP de Qu\u00e9bec, his first race since his stunning fourth place at the Tour de France<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m very motivated,\u201d Seixas told journalists in Qu\u00e9bec<\/a>. \u201cIt won\u2019t be easy because there\u2019s a lot of competition. It\u2019s good to be able to gauge myself against them. It will be a good test to validate my preparation.\u201d<\/p>\n Friday\u2019s Qu\u00e9bec race might not suit him as much as the much tougher, Li\u00e8ge-style GP de Montr\u00e9al on Sunday.<\/p>\n Then everything points toward the world championships, with the elite men\u2019s time trial on September 20 and the road race one week later on September 27.<\/p>\n Seixas is a diving straight back into cycling\u2019s deep end, and with his growing self-confidence, that\u2019s just the way he likes it.<\/p>\n Seixas steps straight back into the fire<\/p>\n Seixas has not raced since July, but he\u2019s raring to go.<\/p>\n He spent the first two weeks after the Tour de France recovering and reconnecting with family and friends, while the cycling world dissected his Tour debut.<\/p>\n With the French media documenting his every move<\/a>, he resumed heavy training during a 10-day altitude camp at Les Arcs in the French Alps, when he was dropping huge training rides on Strava.<\/p>\n The Tour changed him and he knows it.<\/p>\n Seixas left Paris just one place off the podium in a Tour debut that keeps looking better and better. Perhaps it missed a big stage win or the white jersey<\/a>, but fourth at 19 only confirms his talent.<\/p>\n \u201cNow I have more confidence in myself,\u201d Seixas told L\u2019Equipe<\/a>. \u201cI know that at my best, I can be competitive against the best.\u201d<\/p>\n Qu\u00e9bec will give him a low-pressure chance to get back into racing rhythm<\/a> on a course that on paper suits others.<\/p>\n Sunday\u2019s Montr\u00e9al features way more climbing and longer distances that make it a race of attrition.<\/p>\n \u201cQuebec is quite open, for puncheurs. I know what the race is like,\u201d he said. \u201cMontreal is different, and it certainly suits me better. When it\u2019s more about power, it\u2019s better for me. Montreal will be more advantageous for my profile.\u201d<\/p>\n A rainbow jersey suddenly up for grabs<\/p>\n Poga\u010dar\u2019s absence from the UCI road worlds changes everything.<\/p>\n Not only for Seixas, but for everyone else in the peloton. Remco Evenepoel, Mathieu van der Poel, Wout van Aert, and the list goes on.<\/p>\n Instead of racing to win a record-tying third title, the Slovenian is out for the remainder of 2026 after fracturing his collarbone and suffering a concussion in his Vuelta a Espa\u00f1a crash.<\/p>\n Without cycling\u2019s dominant rider casting a shadow over the worlds, there is no overwhelming favorite and no single wheel everyone must follow.<\/p>\n Seixas knows it\u2019s perhaps the opportunity of the decade, especially with Poga\u010dar committed to race through 2032<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cObviously, it will change the complexion of the race because, as we\u2019ve seen for years, he\u2019s truly the boss,\u201d Seixas said of worlds. \u201cHis presence alone is enough to transform the race.\u201d<\/p>\n Seixas has learned first-hand how Poga\u010dar dictates how everyone else races. He clashed with Pogi at Strade Bianche and Li\u00e8ge-Bastogne-Li\u00e8ge this spring.<\/p>\n Montr\u00e9al will be very different without the Slovenian superstar.<\/p>\n \u201cUsually, you have to think about how to race against him,\u201d Seixas said. \u201cYou watch when he attacks and simply try to get on his wheel. His absence changes the complexion of the race, which is now more open.\u201d<\/p>\n Chasing rainbows<\/p>\n