Seixas "survives" stage 2: he was nearly run over (video) and had to respond to a strong attack from his own team

The second stage of the 2026 Tour de France was a true test of cold blood for Paul Seixas. The young Frenchman from Decathlon CMA CGM navigated a day full of setbacks on the streets of Barcelona, where he suffered a flat tire, was nearly hit by an organizational vehicle, and to top it off, a communication problem over the radio caused his own team to launch an offensive move when he was still unprepared.

Paul Seixas overcomes a stage full of incidents and remains among the best in the Tour

Still, the 19-year-old rider managed to minimize losses and crossed the finish line in ninth place, just three seconds behind the favorites' group led by Isaac del Toro, Tadej Pogačar, Remco Evenepoel, and Jonas Vingegaard. As a result, he rises to sixth place in the general classification, 42 seconds behind Vingegaard's yellow jersey and 36 seconds behind Pogačar.

A flat tire, two bike changes, and a big scare

The sequence of problems began about 40 kilometers from the finish when Seixas suffered a flat tire just before the first of three climbs to Montjuïc. In the midst of a chase to return to the peloton, he experienced the most dangerous moment of the day.

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While overtaking a team car on the left, the vehicle unexpectedly moved to that same side to avoid another stopped team car. Seixas had to react in a split second to avoid the impact, in an action that was captured by television cameras.

Riders including Paul Seixas are almost taken out on a narrow section as the Tour de France reaches Barcelona! pic.twitter.com/UvaxAE0Kgq

— Cycling on TNT Sports (@cyclingontnt) July 5, 2026

Despite the scare, he managed to maintain control of the bike, complete the chase, and return to the main group before the race broke apart definitively.

After the stage, the Frenchman calmly explained what happened.

“It's not the first time this has happened to me. I didn't panic, but I was almost hit by a car whose driver didn't check the rearview mirror. It was very dangerous. When the road is so narrow, cars shouldn't move to the left. In the end, the driver saw us, and everything turned out fine. We know that things don't always go as we want, but the most important thing is to stay calm.”

The attack launched by his own team without warning him

When it seemed that the situation was under control, an even more unusual episode occurred during the final climb to Montjuïc.

Decathlon CMA CGM had planned to toughen the race, but a communication failure between Seixas and sports director Luke Rowe led to a completely wrong interpretation of the situation.

The Frenchman tried to communicate that he was still not ready to attack, but the message never got through correctly. Believing that his leader was in peak form, Rowe ordered Tiesj Benoot to accelerate at the front of the group, forcing the team to launch an offensive move when Seixas was still several positions behind.

In statements collected by L’Équipe, the young Frenchman explained what happened:

“There was a small problem with the earpiece. I was trying to tell them that I wasn't ready to attack yet, but the director didn't understand it. He thought I was at a hundred percent and sent Tiesj to attack, even though I wasn't planning to move. In the end, my legs responded better than I expected, but I would have preferred to save some energy for later.”

After the unexpected move by his own team, the pace set by UAE Team Emirates-XRG ultimately selected the group of favorites. Adam Yates toughened the climb before Isaac del Toro finished off the stage in the final ascent to Montjuïc.

Seixas managed to stay with the best for much of the finale and only lost three seconds at the finish.

The Frenchman positively assessed the result considering everything that happened during the day.

“Honestly, it's a very good result given the circumstances. We had some problems with the earpieces, nothing serious, but everything got complicated after the flat tire. I changed bikes twice and spent a lot of energy.

“I told myself that I had to pace myself and save energy for the end. That's what I did. The last climb wasn't as hard as I thought, and I was able to reserve some energy, although I was a bit poorly positioned at the start of the descent. There was an attack at the foot of the final climb, and I couldn't close the gap. But losing only three seconds is very little, and it's a good start to the Tour.”

At just 19 years old, Seixas once again demonstrated surprising calmness on a day when almost everything went wrong. Between a flat tire, a car that was inches away from hitting him, and a tactical confusion caused by a radio failure, the Frenchman managed to keep his options intact in the general classification.