The Etixx-QuickStep professional returned to his traditional time trial position recently and seems to have rediscovered the speed that gave him three world titles between 2011 and 2013. Martin handled the heat and humidity well, staying in his aerodynamic tuck and pushing through the hot air at an average speed of 53.651 km/h.
He set a time of 44:42 for the 40km course, beating 2015 world champion Vasil Kiryienka (Belarus) by 45 seconds. Jonathan Castroviejo (Spain) was third at 1:10. Maciej Bodnar (Poland) finished a surprising fourth after being ignored by the television cameras with a time of 45:59, 1:16 slower than Martin.
Ireland's Ryan Mullen occupied the hot seat for a long time after setting a time 46:06. He suffered nervously as many of his rivals failed to beat his excellent time but had to be content with fifth place.
Several big name time trialists and predicted contenders performed below expectations, with the heat and the fatigue of a long season clearly impacting some riders' performances.
Rohan Dennis (Australia) set a time of 46:10 to finish sixth after struggling to push a big gear in the final part of the time trial. He finished 1:27 slower than Martin. Tom Dumoulin (Netherlands) finished a more distant 11th at 2:01, Alex Dowsett (Great Britain) was 12th at 2:11 and Taylor Phinney (USA) was 15th at 2:21.
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Martin started steady at the isolated Lusail arena in the desert and was fastest at both time checks on the road towards the finish area in the Pearl residential complex. He pushed his usual huge gear with his mouth open sucking in as much air as possible.
He sat on a curb and waited for Kiryienka to finish his ride before celebrating victory with a loud "Yes!" and an emotional hug with Etixx-QuickStep teammate Yves Lampaert of Belgium, who finished seventh.
Like long-time rival Fabian Cancellara, Martin has now won four individual time trial world titles. He will wear the rainbow jersey for the Katusha-Alpecin team in 2017 after deciding to leave Etixx-QuickStep.
"The course was really made for me. The only thing I was scared of was the heat but I had good preparation at home, then coming here having a good week with the team, getting a lot of knowledge about what I had to do. I was also strong in the head, I was not the favourite, I had no pressure, I just had fun on the road, I have to say.”
According to calculations by French newspaper L'Equipe, 44 of Martin's 60 career victories have come in time trials. He added his individual victory in Qatar to the team time trial title won with Etixx-QuickStep on Sunday.
"I always said I don't count the victories," Martin said. "I look forward from year to year, and I want to be world champion every year. I'm so proud I am able to wear the world champion's suit next year – I've missed it a lot. Now I'm looking forward to riding with the rainbow jersey next season."
Before then Martin will be part of the German team in Sunday's elite men road race, where he will support Andre Greipel and Marcel Kittel.
Stephen is one of the most experienced members of the Cyclingnews team, having reported on professional cycling since 1994. Before becoming Editor-at-large, he was Head of News at Cyclingnews. He has previously worked for Shift Active Media, Reuters and Cycling Weekly. He is a member of the Board of the Association Internationale des Journalistes du Cyclisme (AIJC).
