Tom Pidcock heads to Canada with confidence after unexpected form boost

Back on the road just a week after claiming the XCO mountain bike world title in Val di Sole, Pidcock wasted little time in finding his rhythm. The Brit made the decisive move on the final climb in Italy, opening a gap before using his descending skills to make the difference even bigger on the run towards the finish.

More significant than the victory itself, however, was how Pidcock felt doing it.

“I had good legs today,” Pidcock said afterwards. “Normally, after mountain biking, I take some time to find my road legs again. It’s a very different sort of effort.

“I’m very happy with how I felt today and a little bit surprised.”

Pidcock’s surprise was mainly about how quickly his road legs had returned. He said that after mountain biking it normally takes him some time to adjust to the very different effort required on the road.

There was another reason for him to leave Larciano satisfied. His team had controlled much of the race before putting him in position to finish the job.

“The team rode all day on the front, and they just all died before they came on TV,” he joked. “They did a great job.”

Quinten Hermans had a particularly important role in the finale. When attacks began further down the road, the Belgian made sure Pidcock’s team remained represented at the front and was still there to contribute when the race reached its decisive phase.

“Quinten made sure we didn’t get on the back foot when people started attacking,” Pidcock said. “He made sure he was in front and he was super strong there.

“We can be very happy with how we rode.”

Pidcock’s own attack completed the job and delivered his fifth victory of the road season, but he was cautious about reading too much into the result with tougher racing still to come.

Canada is next on his schedule, with Pidcock travelling there on Tuesday as the focus moves towards races where the level and depth of competition will increase.

“There are some good races there,” he said. “They will obviously be a higher level, but it’s good to be here and to win. It’s a good feeling.”