Lenny Martinez explains his extreme inconsistency: "It's really purely physical"

Lenny Martinez had his big breakthrough in 2025, with stage wins in Paris-Nice, the Tour of Romandy, and the Critérium du Dauphiné. However, his extreme inconsistency also remains. Highs and lows often alternated for the Frenchman from Bahrain-Victorious, who himself has something to say about that. "Honestly, it has always been like that," he told Cyclingnews.

In the interview, Martinez then gives an example from his time as a junior. "Even then, I could finish a hundredth on a Saturday, only to be incredibly strong and win on Sunday. I now know it’s purely a physical reason. This year I noticed that, even though I was super motivated and happy in the team bus, I could still feel completely worthless on the very first climb. But there were also days when it was the other way around. At the Dauphiné, I really didn’t feel good and mentally didn’t want to race the stage, yet I still won a stage."

The Frenchman hopes it will improve in the future. Especially since he also hopes to compete in overall classifications. "I think it comes with age. I know that if I have a good day, I can be very strong. If I have a bad day, I can’t even move my bike forward. But this year I really took a big step. I wanted to win at WorldTour level, and I achieved that three times. Winning a stage in Paris-Nice and the Dauphiné is truly huge. When I was younger, I greatly admired riders who succeeded in this, now I am one of them."

Martinez does not plan to make many changes to his program in 2026. On the list again are Paris-Nice, the Tour of Romandy, and the Tour de France. The only difference is that he will start in the Tour of Switzerland. "I was happy with my program last year," he concludes. "And the team suggested riding the Tour of Switzerland, which I liked. It’s always fun to see different places."