Tom Pidcock wants to race a Grand Tour in his debut WorldTour season
The British star has brought forward his transfer to Ineos Grenadiers, as he joins the team in February
Tom Pidcock says he wants to ride a Grand Tour in his debut season at WorldTour level, with his eyes on the Vuelta a España.
The British multi-discipline star is making the highly anticipated step up from under-23 to WorldTour level with Ineos Grenadiers and has brought forward his transfer to the team.
Pidcock had initially planned to start with his new team in March after finishing his cyclocross season, but the 21-year-old will be joining the British WorldTour squad in February, after the CX Worlds on January 31.
Speaking with the Lantern Rouge Cycling Podcast, Pidcock said: “I finish cross on the 31st at the Worlds then as of February then I change to Ineos. It was March but we changed it to February now.
“I’ll be racing. I’m Mediterranean Epic the mountain bike race first, then [Volta ao] Algarve and Opening Weekend [Kuurne-Brusselles-Kuurne and Omloop Het Nieuwsblad]. I’m not having much of a break, I’m going straight into the road.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UE3P4zvYI3o
Pidcock said he has some idea of his programme for the rest of the season, which will include Strade Bianche, a mountain bike block in June, then the Tokyo Olympics.
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He also revealed that he wants to ride the Vuelta a España, but will not be racing the Tour de France or Paris-Roubaix.
In December, Pidcock took the biggest CX victory of his career at the Telenet Superprestige, where he beat world champion Mathieu van der Poel.
Last season the Yorkshireman also dominated the under-23 Giro d’Italia and led the British team in the men’s elite World Championships road race for the first time.
>>> Julian Alaphilippe reveals his big ambitions for 2021 season
Pidcock will be joining a wave of new talent at Ineos Grenadiers, including Adam Yates, Laurens De Plus and Dani Martinez, while Richie Porte who has returned to his old team for 2021 after a spell with Trek-Segafredo.
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Alex Ballinger is editor of BikeBiz magazine, the leading publication for the UK cycle industry, and is the former digital news editor for CyclingWeekly.com. After gaining experience in local newsrooms, national newspapers and in digital journalism, Alex found his calling in cycling, first as a reporter, then as news editor responsible for Cycling Weekly's online news output, and now as the editor of BikeBiz. Since pro cycling first captured his heart during the 2010 Tour de France (specifically the Contador-Schleck battle) Alex covered three Tours de France, multiple editions of the Tour of Britain, and the World Championships, while both writing and video presenting for Cycling Weekly. He also specialises in fitness writing, often throwing himself into the deep end to help readers improve their own power numbers. Away from the desk, Alex can be found racing time trials, riding BMX and mountain bikes, or exploring off-road on his gravel bike. He’s also an avid gamer, and can usually be found buried in an eclectic selection of books.
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