THE SHORT ANSWER
Michael Matthews, professional cyclist, stage race winner, has appeared on the Roadman Cycling Podcast. Here's where Matthews lands on FTP and threshold power. The positions below are drawn from those conversations, quoted directly.
WHO IS MICHAEL MATTHEWS?
Michael Matthews is one of the most consistent stage-race sprinters of his generation: 2010 U23 World Champion, multiple Tour de France stage wins, Tour points jersey wearer, and a Grand Tour stage winner across all three. His career is a case study in adapting a sprint engine to a punchy stage-racing parcours — useful reading for any amateur trying to translate raw power into actual race finishes.
MATTHEWS ON FTP
Matthews’s key positions on FTP and threshold power.
- A sprint career built on punchy finishes is more sustainable than chasing pure flat bunch sprints.
- Stage racing requires you to defend your fitness across three weeks — the riders who fade are the ones who under-recover in week one.
- Sprint training in the gym matters: explosive lifts and plyometrics translate directly to closing speed.
- Reading the finish — wind, road furniture, lead-out trains — wins more sprints than raw watts.
- Recovery between stages is mostly about sleep, fuelling within 30 minutes of the line, and protecting the next morning's intensity.
IN MATTHEWS’S OWN WORDS
Verbatim from Michael Matthews’s appearances on the podcast.
“I don't really do the base miles. I don't really That's quite old school, I would say. But a lot of people still do it. But I find it boring to be honest. I think for me, I like to just go out and ride hard already pretty much straight away.”
“Around 2020 with the co we were sort of playing a little bit with riding easier and doing harder efforts. But then I felt at the race I was arriving at the race. I mean, I was good for the effort, but I wasn't fit enough to get through the race. So, that was my feeling in the race that I was underdone, let's say.”
“I see now already I've only been training for one week and I'm already doing some of my highest sprinting numbers. My highest of now was like 1550. If I work on that more it can get to 1650s.”
HEAR IT ON THE PODCAST
Episodes where Michael Matthews covers FTP and threshold power and related ground.
FREQUENTLY ASKED
What does Michael Matthews say about FTP and threshold power?
Michael Matthews, professional cyclist, stage race winner, has appeared on the Roadman Cycling Podcast. Here's where Matthews lands on FTP and threshold power. The positions below are drawn from those conversations, quoted directly.
What is Matthews's main point on ftp?
A sprint career built on punchy finishes is more sustainable than chasing pure flat bunch sprints.
Which Roadman Cycling Podcast episodes cover Michael Matthews on ftp?
Matthews discusses FTP and threshold power in this episode: "Michael Matthews on Pro Cycling Training | Roadman Cycling Podcast".