This is what Tadej has done for Matthews’ success that is called the “Pogacar effect.”

Michael Matthews feels like a young man even though he is 34 years old. He is in a race that is getting younger and younger. Many of his cycling teammates have quit in the past few years, but the Australian, who rides for Team Jayco-AlUla, has stayed competitive with the new stars who are now ruling the sport. He talked about how important Tadej Pogacar has been in that process with IDLProCycling.com and other news outlets.

Matthews and Pogacar are well-known to be good friends. They spend a lot of time together since they live close to each other in Monaco. One is the best rider in the world, holds the world title, and has won the Giro and the Tour de France. He is 26 years old. The other one is about three racing generations older, has won 42 races in his career, and has had a very up and down 2024 season. Matthews thought, “I think my season went pretty well overall, but there are always things you’d like to improve.”

“The start of the season was very good, especially at Milan-San Remo, where I was just a few centimeters short of my first Monument victory,” he said of his year. Having to take that was tough, but I did well on the test. Then he was disqualified from the Tour of Flanders, which sent his emotions through the roof. It felt great to finally get back on track with a win in Quebec, Canada. We now have a new team with nine new riders. I believe we are stronger and have more backing for my goals in this sport. We were missing some depth, which we’ve now fixed. I hope that it will help me do better.

Matthews said that the season also had some tough physical moments. “Before the Tour de France, I should have had my wisdom teeth taken out.” I had been having trouble with them since a training camp in Livigno, but the doctors told us not to deal with it at the time, which was a mistake. For the rest of the season, I had trouble with it. Some days I could fly, and other days I couldn’t even train. I felt like a new man after getting them taken off near the end of the season. I’m sorry about that; it was a missed chance. But I can’t change it now. I need to figure out what went wrong. I need to act right away instead of waiting when there’s a problem.

Matthews took a big hit at Milan-San Remo.

What else do you call it? A real emotional roller ride. Milan-San Remo was the first race. “For me, San Remo is like a home race; it’s not just another race.” A lot of times, I’ve been on the podium there, and a few times I almost won. “The Monument fits me best, and up until the last 25 meters, everything looked good,” Matthews said. “Then my glasses came off, got stuck in my wheel, and went flying.” In the final race of a Monument, I had never seen anything like that. It took me a long time to get over it—almost until the start of the Tour of Flanders.”

Matthews says it hurt a lot to miss out on the win, especially since Jasper Philipsen grabbed it right in front of him. The races I ran after San Remo, I wasn’t really into them. I was so tired that I couldn’t concentrate. I didn’t just want to finish San Remo as a race. It was very important to me on a personal level. For a second time, it took a lot longer than usual to figure out what happened.

Matthews thought, “I don’t know if I made a mistake by not stopping Philipsen.” “You have to be careful.” Something hit me in the hip, which may have made me move a little. Anyway, I’m not the kind of rider who pushes other riders into the hurdles to get ahead. He might have filed a protest if I had stopped him, and I could have been kicked out of the job. In that race, I think I found the right mix, and I wouldn’t have changed a thing. Even though I would have liked to keep my glasses on, I don’t think I did anything wrong other than that.

Matthews says that the “new cycling” is more fun.

Michael Matthews, who is 34 years old, knows that chances are dwindling, but he still dreams. The driver said, “I’ve been very consistent in Milan-San Remo all my career, but I’ve never won it.” “I recently talked about it with Peter Sagan, and he also said that it’s not on his resume.” It was cool that we talked about it for a long time. He asked me how I keep going in the world of riding. It might have been easier for him to quit after what he did, but I’m still going after my dreams and want to make them come true. I’m not going to stop until I do. “I love this game.”

Matthews says the world of racing is “more aggressive and less scripted,” but he’s found new ways to stay ahead of the competition. “In the past, you’d ride calmly up to the finish line and let a breakaway go.” Now, all classics go all the way from the start. This year at Milan-San Remo, there wasn’t even time to go to the bathroom after the flag dropped. It makes sense for UAE Team Emirates to speed up right away when they have Tadej Pogacar on the team. For riders like me, it’s all about adjusting. You’re out if you don’t.

Matthews really means what he says; those aren’t just empty words. “I enjoy riding my bike more now.” When I was fifteen, everything was brand new, but now I value the bike more. I know more about the sport now. That time, I rode just for fun. These days, I spend more time on and off the bike doing it. To be able to still race at the highest level makes me proud. I’ve fought against three generations of great riders. I enjoy racing against these guys, so it doesn’t feel like work. I’m glad about that.

Does Jayco-AlUla have an Alejandro Valverde?

How has Matthews been able to keep up with the competition? His hard work is part of the answer. “I keep pushing myself and trying new things in the gym, with my nutrition, with my mind, and with training.” Every year I don’t do the same thing because the sport changes and we get better all the time. It’s important to be consistent, and I love riding more than almost anyone else. I’ll stay in the sport as long as I can compete because I love it so much. I think that will take at least two more years, and if this team or that wants to keep me after that, I could stay even longer. That will rely on my skill level as well, since the sport moves quickly.

Matthews also said, “I’ve never felt better on a bike than I do now.” “My numbers are better than ever, I’m happy and sure of myself, and I have a great team behind me.” I’ll stop if I can’t keep up this level. Look at Alejandro Valverde. My wife says I’m a lot like him. He didn’t stop until he could no longer. I’m the same kind of rider and love it just as much. I’ll keep going as long as I can win. We’ve already talked about extending my deal, but we need to talk more about the specifics. Things look good, but they might not stay that way. What will happen if the team changes its mind? Everyone is okay with me for now, but there are always other choices.

That makes Matthews feel better because he has another important goal besides Milan-San Remo. “I want to win the World Championships the most.” Many of my competitors wore the rainbow shirt that day, and it still makes me think of that race. It’s been hard, and I really want to win. There are over 5,000 meters of climbing in Rwanda, so I think it will be too hard for me. Most of the riders will be gone by the end, so I don’t think 2025 will be my year. But I like my calendar; it has served me well for a long time. That’s how I’d like it to stay, but I hope to be a little faster and stronger.

Matthews needs Pogacar a lot.

Matthews found his refuge in Pogacar because he loved the sport and had a strong desire to start over. “Tadej was a very big part of the change I went through.” I recognized myself in him because of the way he acted, which was how I felt when I was that age. That took me back to those days at a time when many of my friends were leaving. Tadej has always kept me in the zone, which has made riding fun for me. Riders who are leaving the sport or are about to leave talk a lot about this. People who are passionate about the sport, on the other hand, are the ones I want to be around because they are full of good energy. Our hobby is riding bikes for fun.

These are beautiful words, but how does Matthews do this? Going to school with Pogacar? “I don’t sprint against Tadej very often.” Just one thing sets me apart from him: runs. That’s why I try to do as many as I can. I like that, and it’s a good thing that he’s a racer who always wants to fight. He wants to get faster, but I’m already faster. So doing it once in a while helps him and makes me feel better about myself. Also, I don’t worry that working with him will make me too tired. He is one of the few people I can ride at a steady pace all day and talk to at the same time. When we work out together, it doesn’t feel like work out; it feels like going for a ride. “Just enjoying the ride, it makes everything easier and smoother.”

Plus, Matthews and Pogacar are both annoyed by the same thing: Milan-San Remo. In the next few years, can they finally help each other win that big race? “One way to win is to play well.” He has the best chance in one case. It’s me in the other one. He thinks the race should be even harder than this year but much harder. I’ll be happy if we only have a few people with us when we get to the end. We can’t really help each other at that point; we need to care about ourselves.

He went on, “We train together a lot, but we are still competitors.” “We’ve never given each other something for free, and we never will.” I like that I don’t have to ask him for anything, even though we’re friends. That’s something I also wouldn’t do for him. We stay on task because we have work to do. That’s what we’ll do again. The news stories about the San Remo scouting ride that were made too big were also taken out of context. It just so happened that the Cipressa and Poggio were on our way to the coast of Italy. Just a normal ride, about 30 km from where we live.