Parallel to the space race and missions to Mars, a star, Paul Seixas, has streaked across the sky of the Itzulia, illuminating the entire race. At just 19 years old, this young talent has made a significant impact on the cycling world, breaking all records and establishing himself as another "alien" in an era of exceptional cyclists.

From the race's opening in Bilbao to its conclusion in Bergara, Seixas displayed his supremacy with a fresh, audacious, brave, and very solid attitude. He crushed his rivals in the Bilbao time trial and soared to the stratosphere in San Miguel de Aralar to don the yellow leader's jersey, cementing his position in the Mendukilo Caves. He completed his triumphant hat-trick in Eibar.

With three stages and the general classification under his belt, Seixas is the dream of French cycling, which has longed for a Tour champion since 1985. The young man from Lyon, who won the Tour de l'Avenir at 18, finished eighth in the Dauphiné, third in the European Championship behind Pogacar and Evenepoel, second in Paris-Camembert, and seventh in Il Lombardia, appears to be a strong candidate to reclaim the Grande Boucle throne.

Seixas's figure has become a matter of state in France. He is currently in full negotiations with his team, Decathlon, to extend his contract with a multi-million euro deal valued between 5 and 7 million. For this operation, the team owners seem willing to establish the structure's tax headquarters in Switzerland to reduce tax pressure. Meanwhile, UAE wishes to sign Seixas once his current contract with Decathlon, which is valid for another year, expires.

When asked about his potential participation in this summer's Tour, he chose to keep it a mystery and conditioned his decision on his performance in his next two races: the Flèche Wallonne and Liège-Bastogne-Liège. "We'll see," the Frenchman enigmatically remarked.