The 2023 world champion got his campaign off to a winning start on Sunday by edging out He Guoqiang 4-3 in Belfast, with typically unusual preparation for the match.
It was not a high quality game and the Belgian Bullet admitted that flying into Belfast from Mallorca on the morning of the match wasn’t ideal.
‘The early flight this morning from Mallorca didn’t help,’ he told Eurosport. ‘Three hours, quite early, it was a rough flight as well. No excuses, but that’s why I wasn’t that sharp today.’
Brecel has been in Mallorca doing a lot of cycling in the sunshine, which sounds lovely, but former Masters champion Alan McManus questioned if it is the best preparation for a ranking event.
‘I don’t look at it that way,’ said Brecel. ‘I don’t look at it like a ranking event, I just see it as a game today, for me it’s like practice, I’m totally honest.
‘I just love playing, I don’t love playing because of the ranking points or because of the money, I just love playing. If it’s here or Spain or at home in practice, it doesn’t matter to me, it’s all the same. That’s why I look like I don’t take it serious, but I actually do.’
McManus, who would have been quite the opposite in his preparations during his playing days, suggested Brecel may not appear as committed to the game as he should be. Asked if he would say that was an unfair assessment, the Bullet said:’No I wouldn’t, I would agree, because I have different priorities in life to other players, maybe. That’s how I see it.
‘Maybe as a snooker fan it’s difficult to support me. Maybe it’s easy because you never know what’s going to happen.
‘That’s the way I live my life, obviously I can see it’s different to other players but that’s the way I want to live and I enjoy it. I’ve been cycling the last few days in Mallorca, it’s not the preparation other players maybe would take but I do and I enjoy it.
‘I can turn up any tournament and win it or I can lose first round, that’s how it’s always been in my career. I prefer it that way. That’s the funny thing about it.’
The 29-year-old then revealed that he has not only been putting in the hours on the bike, he has been putting in zero hours on the practice table over the last month.
‘I do feel good actually on the table. I’m not as sharp as I could be, especially now for this tournament because I haven’t played for four weeks, so I don’t expect to be sharp,’ he said.
‘I know I’m going to play some bad stuff because I’m not sharp enough all the time. But this is not the way I prepare for all the tournaments. Some tournaments I do prepare well, play every day, I just need the up and down. Sharp sometimes, not so sharp, that’s the way I want it.’
These are not empty words from the former world champ as after his win on Sunday he has flown back to Mallorca before his next match, posting pictures on social media from Alcúdia.
Brecel jumped back on a plane to get back to cycling in the sun and will be back in Belfast when he takes on Pang Junxu on Wednesday.
His lengthy commuting is down to his change in focus away from snooker and to competing in an Ironman race, which is the small matter of a 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile cycle ride, and 26.2-mile run.
‘My big goal is Ironman in 2028,’ he said on Sunday. ‘That’s the main focus. To complete it would give me much more of a buzz than winning the World Championship. No disrespect to winning at the Crucible because that was amazing as well. Just to complete it would feel like a win. I would love to do it in Hawaii, but I don’t mind where it is.
‘I need four to five years to be sharp for it and my whole life is built around that now. It’s my goal and I will definitely make it one day. Ian Burns did it recently, not the full one but he inspired me. I have always loved running, I used to be a good runner so now I need to build it up again. Then my best friend got me into cycling, I have been doing a lot of time on the bike. I want to get good at those first and then perhaps in two years I will start the swimming training.
‘I needed to lose weight – I have lost 11 kilos so far and I need to lose ten to 15 more. It would be good to be the first Ironman snooker player.
‘People might say “he could have won more” but for me it’s not about winning more, it’s about enjoying it. I do enjoy this game, I love it every time I come to the table. But this is the lifestyle I need to have to enjoy it. For me it’s perfect, what’s what I have done for my whole career. I like being able to switch off from snooker when I’m not playing and then switch back on for matches. It was great to have a holiday and in fact I’m flying back to Mallorca tonight and then returning to Belfast before my next match. I can’t wait to be on the beach tomorrow.’
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