'I've improved massively' - Pidcock fights to keep podium spot at Vuelta
Tom Pidcock is one stage away from reaching the third and final week of the Vuelta a España podium, and the 26-year-old reflected on the step up he has made in a GC capacity at the Spanish Grand Tour
Tom Pidcock (Q36.5) remains in third place overall at the Vuelta a España after limiting his losses well inside the final kilometre on the stage 14 summit finish at La Farrapona, though his advantage over fourth-placed Jai Hindley has been cut to just 32 seconds.
The 26-year-old finished eighth on the stage, conceding 14 seconds to race leader Jonas Vingegaard and João Almeida, while also losing 10 seconds to his closest challenger Hindley, who launched a late attack in the final kilometre. Pidcock remained in good spirits after the stage, citing the overall improvement in his performance over longer climbs.
"Yeah, I lost a bit more time, but I think I'm getting better and better with these longer efforts," Pidcock told reporters after the stage. "This is definitely the thing I struggle with the most, well not struggle with the most, everyone struggles because it's hard, but the thing I can improve the most in and this year I have improved massively but obviously there's still a lot more."
The anticipated headwind on the final climb significantly impacted tactics, with the GC contenders holding off making decisive moves until towards the final kilometre. Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe and UAE Team Emirates-XRG controlled the pace throughout the latter portion of the stage, aiming to create a difficult day for their rivals.
"It was still pretty hard though, yeah obviously UAE and Bora wanted it to be a hard day, and make it a long effort in this final climb, which it kind of was," Pidcock explained. "Luckily, it was up and down at the start, so not too bad, but the wind kind of made it hard, in the fact that you had to fight as close as you could to the edge, also that meant that it was only the final km that made the difference."
The British rider now sits 2:38 behind Vingegaard in the general classification as the race edges closer to the second rest day on Monday. Before that break, however, the peloton faces another challenging day on stage 15.
Despite featuring a flat finish, Sunday’s stage includes approximately 3,287 metres of climbing, primarily front-loaded into the route. When asked if he expected an easier day, Pidcock noted that it may not necessarily be a day for the GC contenders, but it will still play its part in building fatigue, something which becomes more important in a Grand Tour with each passing day.
"We'll see about that. I don't know, maybe a day off for us [GC riders], but it's not going to be easy," he said.
