Michael Matthews believes that luck will be the biggest factor in deciding who gets to wear the rainbow jersey at the end of Sunday's men's road race at the World Championships. Matthews, who claimed silver at last year's race in Richmond, will head up the Australian team in Doha, while up-and-coming sprinter Caleb Ewan is a secondary option.
A long year and the desert heat of Doha will have big parts to play in the 260-kilometre race, says Matthews. "It's hard to say really what is going to happen, but it will be a race of attrition," he told Cyclingnews.
"It's been hard to really judge your form to come up at the right time because you're not sacrificing any races through the year either. These World Championships are such a lottery. If you're not drinking enough or you do something a little bit wrong in the race then it could be totally finished. I've had to focus on other races through the year, and then come here with whatever legs I have left from the season."
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Matthews has been there or thereabouts in recent months with top-five finishes at the RideLondon Classic, Bretagne Classic, and the GPs Quebec and Montreal. However, he struggled in the flatter sprints of the Eneco Tour, and he knows that he will be up against it to replicate what he did in 2015.
"I didn't quite have the results that I was looking for going into the World Championships this year and also the course doesn't suit me down to the bone like it did in Richmond," Matthews said. "Obviously, it would be incredible [to win], but I think it's too long away to say that. I just want to try and use what I have and see what comes out of it."
Attrition is definitely a word that could be used to describe this season with many struggling to hold their form at this stage of the year. Matthews had a slightly later start to the year in March at Paris-Nice and competed in just 55 race days ahead of Sunday. The Australian, however, is still feeling the fatigue of continuing his racing calendar into October.
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