Australian Michael Matthews has no plans to surrender the pink jersey in the Giro d'Italia. Picture: AFP AFP Source: LUK BENIES / AFP
HE has such a penchant for designer jewellery that he happily answers to the nickname "Bling".
That's what's on the personalised number plates of the $160,000 Porsche sports car in which he cruises around the French Riviera, where he lives in a rented apartment worth about $5 million.
Needless to say, Canberra cyclist Michael Matthews stands out in a crowd — as he has done in Ireland and Italy this week.
Matthews, 24, has led the Giro d'Italia, the second biggest bike race in the world, at the end of stages two, three and four, having helped Orica-GreenEDGE win the opening team time-trial.
And there were no plans to surrender the leader's pink jersey, the maglia rose, with last night's and tonight's stages featuring uphill finishes that suit Matthews, who can climb as well as sprint.
"I'm probably in my best climbing form, so these two stages are my main goal," he said yesterday after holding his ground in a tricky fourth stage, the first in Italy after three days in Ireland.
With the roads made slippery by rain, a rider protest convinced officials to neutralise the final 8km. Several crashed anyway but Matthews, who had fallen in stage two, escaped unscathed and leads the tour by eight8seconds.
He has joined elite company — Cadel Evans, Brad McGee, Richie Porte, Robbie McEwen and Brett Lancaster — as the only Australians to wear the pink, and was poised to pass Porte's 2010 record of three days in it in 2010.
Australia's Michael Matthews, at center of the pack with the pink jersey of leader of the race, pedals during the fourth stage of the Giro d'Italia, Tour of Italy cycling race, from Giovinazzo to Bari, Italy, Tuesday May 13, 2014. (AP Photo/Gian Mattia D'Alberto) Source: AP
Adding to an impressive couple of weeks for Australian cycling — Orica-GreenEDGE won six races in eight days leading into the Giro — another young gun, Rohan Dennis, won yesterday's stage three of the Tour of California, riding for US outfit Garmin-Sharp. He trails 2012 Tour de France champion Brad Wiggins by 24sec.
Matthews is one of a number of GreenEDGE riders with big futures. Although the team for the Tour de France has not been named yet, he is pencilled in to make his debut, possibly at the expense of highly paid designated sprinter Matt Goss, whose future is on shaky ground after a long run of disappointing results.
That will be "a dream come true" for Matthews, who shot to prominence with two stage wins in last year's Tour of Spain, having won the under-23 title at the 2010 road race world championships in Geelong.
He joined GreenEDGE after two underwhelming years with Dutch outfit Rabobank, where he admitted he lost his "way a little bit".
It was culture shock to some extent.
"Being an Australian in a Dutch team was always going to be difficult," he said.
"GreenEDGE suits me a lot better. We have a lot more fun and I get much more help in races. The atmosphere in the team is the best I've ever seen.
"This is home now and I don't think I'll be changing to anywhere else in the future."
Despite his glitzy image, Matthews is a well-grounded, politely spoken hard worker whose favourite phrases seem to be "giving it 110 per cent" and "doing everything right".
But he's more than happy with the "Bling" thing, which started when he was competing in motocross as a teenager and "everybody was trying to look the coolest".
"Bringing that style into cycling, it's a bit different," he said. "Hopefully I can make a name out of it with some sort of fashion line or something like that.''
"If I can keep winning and keep the image going it should be fun."
He is also a car freak, and the Porsche is destined to make way for a Ferrari in due course. This is a sportsman looking to go places — fast.
ron.reed@news.com.au
Twitter: @Reedrw
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