Brammeier said he’s felt good the past week in Qatar but has been unlucky with late punctures
By Brian Canty
After five stages of the Tour of Qatar and with just one more to go tomorrow, Friday, three-time Irish national road race champion Matt Brammeier is in good spirits and more importantly is “feeling pretty good”.
Brammeier, riding for the Champion System team in his season opener, has enjoyed a solid week to date and only for punctures in the final kilometres of two stages he believes he would be higher than his current place of 52nd overall.
Still, at 2:29 down on race leader Mark Cavendish (Omega Pharma Quick Step) he certainly hasn’t disgraced himself and is already excited about the upcoming races to see where his form can take him.
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“I’m feeling pretty good now,” said Brammeier after today’s stage from Al Zubara Fort - Madinat Al Shamal, where he was 109th some 37 seconds down.
“I am a little pissed off with the last two days though, to be honest. I have had good legs coming into the finish and both times I’ve had punctures in the last 4-5 kilometres which have cost me some time and made me chase unnecessarily and waste energy trying to minimise time lost. I guess the only true test was on stage one when it was really hard. There I made the front split and was riding good. So I’m happy with where I’m at and ready for the next races.”
Brammeier’s 2012 was something of a disaster with his move to Omega-Pharma Quick Step not proving very fruitful. Being hit by a knee injury hampered his search for form.
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He has sported some strapping on his knees this week but said: “They are both fine, I just tape them up more as a precaution. Nothing to worry about there.”
Qatar is not one of the more glamorous races on the pro circuit but it’s no less frantic than any other, explained Brammeier.
“It’s usually pretty chaotic and crazy but this week we only had one good day of wind – which was on the first stage. Since then it has been still which is almost unheard of here in Qatar. It’s a little disappointing really because I could possibly have done more with more wind, like I showed on the opening day.”
As regards scenery in the arid landscapes he said: “Normally we don't have time to sight-see as it’s so hectic but this has been one of the most boring races of my life!”
Before he went for his massage, Brammeier was keen to thank Neil Martin, father of Dan, for his help in getting him race fit in recent months – behind the motorbike.
“It’s always helpful to ride behind the motorbike after training. It’s an easy way to get some more time on the bike and also a good way of some race simulation effort. Those power spikes you get in the peloton are pretty hard to replicate without a scooter so I was happy to get that done last week so I have to thank Neil Martin for that.”
Tomorrow’s final stage in Qatar is a 116 kilometre trek from the Sealine Beach Resort to Doha Corniche.
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