We can already tell you,  Bastien Blanqué  et  Thomas Leygue  will not be French champions for a fourth time in a row...

La  injury to the French number 1  and his long-term unavailability will inevitably reshuffle the cards of this 2025 French championship, but he is not the only notable absentee from the biggest meeting on the French circuit.

Bordeaux  Thomas Vanbauce  and the Toulonnais  Alexander Toppin  were both, a few weeks apart, victims of a  cruciate ligament rupture .

Any movement in the 12 automatically qualified pairs?

So there are three major absentees who were all part of the  12 pairs automatically qualified  for this 2025 French championship.
So let's take stock,  3 players find themselves without a partner: 

  •  Bastien Blanqué  (associated with Thomas Leygue)
  •  Johan Bergeron  (associated with Thomas Vanbauce)
  •  Nicolas Molinero  (associated with Alexandre Toppin)
Thomas Vanbauce Worlds 2024

Note that for  Thomas Vanbauce , the injury is  less serious . It's about a  posterior cruciate ligament rupture , a serious attack but which, in his case,  did not require surgery .

 Result :  the chances of seeing the duo again  Thomas Vanbauce / Johan Bergeron  to  French Championships  remain intact,  provided that Thomas is operational again by September .

BBs internationally, but also in France?

This might seem obvious,  Bastien Blanqué  et  Johan Bergeron  have decided since 2024 to partner full-time on the international circuit and have already achieved very good results. Several titles on the  FIP circuit , a second round in  Roland Garros Major  or even more recently at  Major of Rome  where they came out of qualifying with flying colors.

But for the most assiduous, this also brings back some memories in the French championship, Bastien and Johan won this competition 3 times together: in  2017, 2018 and 2019. 

It is therefore quite natural that we see the two players teaming up for the occasion, in the event that Thomas Vanbauce obviously cannot return in time next September, which would make them the new  seeded 1  and big  Favourites  of these 2025 French championships.

Molinero, an opportunity for a player to avoid regional championships?

The Marseillais  Nicolas Molinero  finds himself orphaned of his great friend  Alexander Toppin  and this could provide the opportunity to  a player in the French top 30  to join him in the  pairs automatically qualified .

 Some alternatives  which may be viable for the 23rd French player:

  •  Yannis Muesser  : the Strasbourg resident could well do the business of  Miller , his very offensive style of play is very similar to that of Alexander Toppin  and could give  a balanced and complete pair They have even already shared the track several times, notably with a title in Dijon in P1000.
  •  Pierre-Vincent  : even if it is associated with  Nicolas Rouanet , the player of Mind Padel  might be interested in avoiding regionals, being  physically diminished . This could allow him to recover properly and arrive directly in the  final table  of the 2025 French championships.
  •  Ludovic Cancel  : the two men have already been  partners and P1000 winners  together, the opportunity for  Nicolas Molinero  to be supported by a player  reliable and experienced  of the French circuit.

The  unfortunate injuries  which reshuffle the cards of these French championships and which also add a little more suspense with the absence of the triple champion pair , the opportunity for  new faces to assert themselves  on a major competition in France.

Teo Vieau

He discovered padel in 2016 in Nantes and quickly became attached to the game, even climbing to 474th place in France. Commentator on Padel Mag TV, he covers the various tournaments on the French circuit as well as international tournaments organized in France!