This spring, Matej Mohorič claimed to have "destroyed cycling" after winning Milan-San Remo.
"Everyone will start to use dropper posts," said the Slovenian after revealing the secret behind his solo escape on the white-knuckle descent of the Poggio.
However, the supposedly game-changing technology doesn't appear to have caught on in the pro peloton, ot yet at least.
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"I didn't see so much enthusiasm about using it in road races after I used it successfully in San Remo," Mohorič said while at the Bahrain Victorious training camp in Spain.
"But I still believe it makes a difference. It makes the bike easier to control and lowers the centre of gravity. If there's a chance, I'll definitely use it again in some races, but I don't know what the others will do."
Part of the problem is the fact that dropper posts, which are common in mountain biking, are so rare on road bikes. In fact, most seat tubes are shaped in a way that wouldn't even fit the droppers currently on the market. And to comply with UCI regulations, they have to be on the market already.
Despite Bahrain Victorious sponsor FSA making a dropper post of its own, the post in use by Mohorič was a sponsor-incorrect choice of the Fox Transfer SL Performance Elite, made possible due to the traditional round standard seatpost on the Merida Scultura - which itself was a change of bike from his usual Reacto.
"It's not so easy to implement on a road bike. It needs to be assessed by the UCI, safety tested, approved, so it's not so easy," Mohorič explained.
"The one we used was completely standard and that's one of the rules you need to respect - it needs to be tested and so on. So it's not going to be easy for all the others to use. I'm not sure if they will push for it or not."
Still, it'll be no surprise to see Mohorič lining up for a Milan-San Remo defence with a dropper post installed once again. He may have lost his element of surprise now but still believes he can win the Italian Monument in several ways.
"Milan-San Remo will be a tricky race next year. I doubt the race is going to finish the same way it did last year - surely the others will try to attack before the Poggio and make a difference on the climb, but I'll still try to do my best, get to the top with as little gap as possible and come back on the descent.
"Even if comes down to the last kilometres, I still think I have a chance to attack and anticipate the sprint, or possibly do the sprint. I'll decide in the heat of the moment. It's an intense final - one of the best in cycling."
Milan-San Remo will signal the start of the most important period of Mohorič's 2023 season as he targets the Spring Classics right through to Paris-Roubaix. Later in the summer, he'll return to the Tour de France - where he won two stages in 2021 but was derailed by Epstein Barr Virus this year - and then onto an early World Championships in Glasgow.
"My dream is to win Roubaix and one day the World Championship. Next year, with the Worlds right after the Tour, which I think will suit me, I'm very much looking forward to that."
As for the Spring, he has a packed schedule which takes in all the Flemish and Ardennes Classics, with Mohorič to co-lead a team that also features the up-and-coming Fred Wright, seventh at Tour of Flanders this year.
"There's a long way from San Remo to Roubaix but I think it's possible to hold peak physical condition for a month and a half," he said.
"I do think we have one of the strongest teams for the Classics. Jumbo-Visma remains the one to beat. Wout van Aert is the biggest favourite, then you have Mathieu [van der Poel], [Tom] Pidcock, and others. But we have some great riders.
Fred Wright, I'm sure, is capable of winning a Monument. It'll also be interesting to see what Jonathan Milan can do - he's physically very gifted for the Belgian Classics.
"We have cards to play and I'm confident we can race united and pull off some good results."
As for whether any further whacky technical tweaks can be expected, Mohorič remained tight-lipped.
"We don't have anything of the same scale as the dropper yet. But we are definitely paying attention to stay ahead of the game and plan ahead. We're testing materials all the time and constantly trying to improve so we have the best package.
"Next year I'll still use the Merida Reacto and things will more or less stay the same. Some minor things might change but that's all I can say for now."
