Mathieu van der Poel and Tom Pidcock set for first MTB showdown since 2023 ahead of Worlds

It will be the first time since 2023 that the two multidisciplinary stars have faced each other in a mountain bike race, and comes just days before the World Championships in Val di Sole, where both are expected to challenge for the rainbow jersey.

Van der Poel has turned his attention away from the road following a successful Tour de France, where he won two stages, including the finale on the Champs Élysées. Pidcock also enjoyed a strong Tour, finishing ninth overall and twice reaching the podium from breakaways.

Both riders then took some time away from racing before switching their focus towards mountain biking.

For Van der Poel, the World Championships are one of the biggest remaining objectives of his career. The Dutchman has already won world titles on the road, in cyclocross and in gravel, but the elite mountain bike rainbow jersey continues to elude him.

His best result at the Mountain Bike World Championships remains the bronze medal he won in Lenzerheide in 2018. His more recent attempts have brought less success. Van der Poel crashed on the opening lap of the 2023 World Championships in Glasgow, while last year he finished 29th in Crans Montana.

Les Gets will be Van der Poel’s first mountain bike race of the 2026 season and his only competitive outing in the discipline before the World Championships on August 30. Since the Tour de France, he has spent time training at altitude in Livigno as he builds towards Val di Sole.

The French venue is already familiar territory. Van der Poel finished sixth in the World Cup race in Les Gets last year despite arriving with limited mountain bike preparation, underlining his ability to compete near the front against riders who focus on the discipline throughout the season.

His return this weekend will come with an added challenge. Van der Poel is set to start from the fifth row of the grid, leaving him with significant ground to make up in the opening phase of the race.

Pidcock arrives with more recent mountain bike experience. The Briton raced the World Cup round in Nové Město earlier this season and took victory, reinforcing his status as one of the leading contenders whenever he returns to the discipline.

He is already an elite XCO world champion and a two time Olympic gold medallist, having won the title at both Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024.

The two last faced each other in a mountain bike race in September 2023, during a test event on the course that would later host the Olympic competition in Paris. Neither featured prominently at the front that day, with Van der Poel finishing 28th and Pidcock 36th.