Phil Bauhaus in a TOUR interview: "I'd hate to be an extra on Cavendish's record"

Phil Bauhaus - about the person

Phil Bauhaus was born in Bocholt on 8 July 1994. As a cyclist, he competed for his home club RC 77 Bocholt. At the age of ten, he won his first race at the Eigelsteintorburg in Cologne. He joined Team Stölting at continental team level in 2013. He continued his professional career from 2015 for Bora-Argon 18, 2017 for Team Sunweb and has been with Bahrain-Victorious since 2019. His first professional victory came at the Tour of Bulgaria in 2013.

He rode his first Grand Tour in 2017 as part of Tom Dumoulin's team, but had to pull out on the 17th stage. In 2020, he won two stages and the overall classification of the Tour of Saudi Arabia. At World Tour level, Bauhaus won stages at the Tour of Poland (2021, 2022) at Tirreno-Adriatico (2022, 2024), at the Tour Down Under (2023) and at the Tour of the Dauphine (2017). In autumn 2023, he married his long-time girlfriend Josefine Graffe.

The TOUR interview with Phil Bauhaus

The interview was conducted by Tim Farin

TOUR: As we speak, you are currently at an altitude training camp in the Sierra Nevada. What are you doing there as a sprinter?

Phil Bauhaus: As most spectators probably realise, the Tour is getting harder and harder every year, more and more mountainous. When I was young and watched the Tour on TV, it had hardly any metres of climbing in the first week and always completely flat bunch sprints. There's hardly anything like that any more. Even in the sprint stages we often have to climb 1500, 2000 metres in altitude. So even as a sprinter, I have to climb mountains well. What's more, the quality of the sprint trains is increasing, the finale is becoming more and more difficult - and I can't expect the best lead-out as a sprinter in my team. This means that in order to be able to sprint at all, I have to have a very high basic level. I get that at altitude.

TOUR: How much time do you spend in altitude training camps each year?

Phil Bauhaus: Before the Giro I did it for three weeks, before the Tour we also planned it - probably two and a half, three weeks. So I think it will be six weeks in the first six months.

TOUR: Isn't that terribly boring?

Phil Bauhaus: No. First of all, the weather is usually pleasant in the Sierra Nevada. I also get a lot of support. My coach is here, as is Jascha Sütterlin, my team-mate, and we get on really well together. We also have a physio here who does great massages with us - a really good team. It's a lot of fun. Of course, it's a lot of time away from home, away from my wife. But I'm not looking at the whole time, but rather from day to day, from training session to training session, and then at some point it's already close to home.

TOUR: Do you have the feeling or even evidence that the effort is worthwhile?

Phil Bauhaus: In terms of my training figures, I'm a lot better than last year. I hope that I can show that I can be even more consistent. But of course, training and racing are fundamentally different. Especially for me as a sprinter, these values are only one thing. The other is the timing, the positioning, the right rear wheel to get to the front.

TOUR: You took your first prominent sprint victory at the Tirreno-Adriatico stage race in March, on a very difficult stage. How significant was that?

Phil Bauhaus: You know that, but that's just the way it is: It's great for sprinters to get a win relatively early in the season. Tirreno-Adriatico is a great stage for that. It gave me a lot of self-confidence for the season. On top of that, the stage didn't exactly go in my favour. It was very cold, wet and also long. I had the feeling beforehand that I was stronger than in 2023, and it showed. I've simply become a stronger racer, and this race proved that to me.

TOUR: And when you think about the fact that you were on the team with Jonathan Milan last year and then beat him in Italy - is that also a relevant message?

Phil Bauhaus: No, that doesn't matter at all. I also got on very well with Jonathan in the team. We had a very good, open and honest relationship with each other and enjoyed each other's successes. So it didn't matter whether it was Jonathan Milan in second place or someone else.

TOUR: Your next destination is France. Aren't you actually too old to win your first Tour stage?

Phil Bauhaus: I'll be 30 during the Tour. Okay, maybe that's too old for the absolute high-flyer, for the best sprinter in the world. But that certainly won't stop me from looking for my chance.

>> This is the route of the Tour de France 2024

TOUR: André Greipel was also almost 29 when he won his first stage in France ...

Phil Bauhaus: Yes, then I'm not in such a bad position. I think every rider would be happy with a single Tour de France stage win. It doesn't matter at what age. Of course there are always exceptions, riders who collect double-digit stage wins. It would be an honour for me to win a stage. Maybe I can still do it at the age of 29.

TOUR: Do you find that experience helps you in the sprints at the top level?

Phil Bauhaus: Definitely. It's the same in many professions, you know how it is: you become more experienced. Sure, you still make mistakes. As a guy, I also take a bit more risk. I'd rather gamble until the very end than ride ahead in the wind and maybe finish fifth. My routine helps me, I stay a bit more in the slipstream and hope that the gap opens up so that I have the legs to sprint for the win. The more often I've done this, the better overview I have. And you really learn something new, especially at Tour level.

TOUR: Are there any rear wheels that you like to stick to?

Phil Bauhaus: It's hard to say. I physically offer more slipstream, many other smaller sprinters are not as comfortable for me. Of course it's great on Jasper Philipsen's rear wheel. But that's what everyone wants to catch. I also like it when someone sets off early: Mads Petersen, Jonathan Milan, those are the kind of guys I'd like to see on the back wheel. But it's difficult to make a choice. In the last 500 metres it's often just one line, there's not much you can do. Eye and experience are factors, but so is chance. A lot of it is also gambling, a game of chance.

I'd rather gamble until the very end than ride ahead in the wind and maybe finish fifth. - Phil Bauhaus

TOUR: You were strong at your first Tour in 2023, finishing on the podium three times. Will it be more difficult for you this time?

Phil Bauhaus: No. I think the starting position is the same as last year. For outsiders, it may have been the case that they didn't have me on their radar. But I knew I was in good shape - and the same applies this year. The competition hasn't really changed that much either. I've shown in the past that I can beat these people. My goal in 2023 was to win a stage and that's what it will be this year too.

TOUR: The battle for the green jersey is not an issue for you?

Phil Bauhaus: Everything is subordinate to winning the stage. Last year, I also stayed out of the bonus sprints. Of course, this is also due to the way we are organised as a team - we simply don't have the same priorities as the sprinter teams. Last year, the team made it very clear that we wouldn't be chasing points. But of course it would be stupid to write it off in advance. But you can only win green with stage wins and you have to get to the end in the first place. That didn't work out for me last year either.

TOUR: You finished your first tour in the Alps on the 17th stage. You had to expect that. But what did it do to you?

Phil Bauhaus: It was a very, very difficult moment for me, probably one of the hardest ever. Of course: I had already realised beforehand, from week to week and from day to day, that it was going to get tighter at some point. When we set off in the mountains, it was all about the gruppetto, I was riding with people like Cavendish, Jakobsen and Ewan - and they even had their helpers with them. But then one after the other dropped out, it's like a list that you go up from the bottom. At some point it's your turn. I was already on my own on the first climb, and on the second climb I had seven minutes on the gruppetto. It was clear that I wouldn't make it in the time limit. So I had to give up. That was the only option, but I still had to struggle with it for a few weeks. After all, it was my childhood dream to arrive in Paris and ride the sprint there, of course. I had secretly hoped for a stage win there. When I got into the car in the mountains, all those hopes were gone.

TOUR: This year the Tour ends in Nice, with a time trial, plus a final week that is hostile to sprinters - do you have to torture yourself to the end?

Phil Bauhaus: That is certainly less appealing, especially with the individual time trial in Nice. As a sprinter, I don't get paid for finishing a tour, but for placing. So it would be bearable for me if I had to drop out after the last sprint. But something else happens at the Tour. I think that every athlete at the start wants to make it to the last stage. I also have this ambition and my team would definitely support me.

TOUR: Do you actually have another role in the team, perhaps even a helping role, when it's not about the sprint?

Phil Bauhaus: To be honest, I can't do much for the team here. We have a different distribution of tasks. For me, it's mostly just about keeping up - and finding a group in the mountains that I can join within the time limit.

As a sprinter, I don't get paid for finishing a tour, but for placing. - Phil Bauhaus

TOUR: Could one say that there is a two-tier society in the sprint at the Tour?

Phil Bauhaus: Definitely, and even more so than with the cyclists on the mountain. Jasper Philipsen was already a cut above the others last year. Of the five sprints he had, he won four. There wasn't much to gain for the others. But you still have to be there when a situation doesn't go Philip's way. Of course, Jordi Meeus did a great job of that last year in Paris. However, this superiority will not diminish in 2024. But the nice thing about sprinting is that you still have a chance with tactics and with a bit of luck and a clever move.

TOUR: Mark Cavendish is waiting for such an opportunity. He still wants his 35th stage win, the record for himself at the Tour. Would you like to be there when that happens?

Phil Bauhaus: Basically, I would like to prevent it. Because then I would have won the stage. My dream comes first. I know Mark, we rode together here in the team in 2020. I've got on well with him since then and we chat a lot at bike races. I personally wouldn't begrudge him the record win. But I'd hate to be an extra. I wouldn't mind being there if he secured the record. Of course, we are rivals.

TOUR: Did you learn anything from Cavendish back then?

Phil Bauhaus: Definitely. He's a very open guy, he also tried to help me. It was a shame that it was the coronavirus season. That meant we weren't travelling together as much. But he helped me in the races that we did do together. Back then, I also won the Saudi Tour in the spring, where he also took the sprint for me, which was of course a funny scenario. Cavendish takes the sprint on the last stage! He also gave me tips on positioning. You can't do it better than him. I've already internalised that.

TOUR: Another former colleague of yours is Marcel Sieberg, who, like you, comes from Bocholt. What role does he play in your career?

Phil Bauhaus: I carry the three years I spent with him with me my whole career, my whole life. Even though Marcel is no longer active as a professional, he remains an influence. He taught me how to get into a good position in the sprint. He is a very easy-going guy, which he also practised in the race and passed on to me. That's important: taking a more relaxed approach to things. We are still in close contact. We're almost neighbours in Bocholt. When I ride sprints, Sibi watches them and gives his two cents. You never stop learning and you always have to keep developing. I'm grateful that I can still ask Marcel questions. He's the expert rider, he did that for André Greipel for years.

TOUR: During your first Tour de France last year there were also negative headlines, you refused to give an interview to ARD - the reason was a dispute about a doping documentary. You then spoke to the ARD investigative journalist Hajo Seppelt. What actually came out of it?

Phil Bauhaus: We have spoken to each other and agreed that what we have discussed will remain between us. I would also like to keep it that way. It's no longer a big issue for me.

TOUR: But perhaps you have learnt something from the incident?

Phil Bauhaus: Basically, I have perhaps become a little more cautious with the media.

TOUR: Bernie Eisel said in an interview with TOUR about journalists' questions to athletes: "We can talk about doping, but we don't have to." Were you also concerned at the time that the questions were reflexive and you didn't agree with them?

Phil Bauhaus: As I said, it's no longer a big issue. But I think the exchange afterwards was good for both of us. But it is clear that journalists often ask their questions according to a pattern. Regardless of cycling, there are always athletes who don't want to answer questions. Everyone should have this freedom. I think that's okay from an athlete's point of view. And I also think it's okay if journalists sometimes don't ask a question they don't want to ask - regardless of whether their supervisor expects them to.

TOUR: Let's take a look into the future. What's on the agenda for you after the tour?

Phil Bauhaus: The races in Germany are always interesting for me as a German rider. That means the Tour of Germany and Hamburg, which is very interesting for me as a sprinter. Last year I was knackered after the Tour and had health problems. I hope that this year I can manage things a bit differently and come out of the Tour stronger and more stable. The Tour of Poland would also be possible this year because there is a bit more time in between with the Olympics. Then there's the Münsterland Giro at the end of the season. Of course I'd like to be there because it's right on my doorstep. But our team isn't racing there, so it's only possible with the national team. I wasn't in shape last year, so it wouldn't have made sense. I also had something else on my mind beforehand with my wedding. And then I commentated the race on WDR - that was also a nice experience.