Tom Pidcock to make road season debut at Volta ao Algarve

After a wise decision to take a short break from his cyclo-cross campaign, Tom Pidcock is gearing up for his eighth and final race of the season, with the Ineos Grenadiers rider happy to be past an unfortunate spell with illness.

"It was a shame [to miss races], but it was the right thing to do," Pidcock said, having decided to prioritise his recovery and miss the X2O Trofee Koksijde, Hexia Cyclocross Gullegem and the World Cup in Zonhoven.

"I wasn’t feeling myself so it was time to reset. I’ve been fully focused on my health over the last two weeks and now I’m in Spain and back to training."

After a promising start to his brief cyclo-cross season at the X2O Trofee Herentals, Pidcock was soon off the mark with a win at the World Cup round in Namur. Fans started to dream of multiple showdowns between Pidcock, Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Deceuninck) and Wout van Aert (Visma-Lease a Bike) over the winter months, but it was not meant to be.

Read more: Big picture: Tom Pidcock’s camp hold the course as road season looms

Pidcock clocked up podium places in World Cup Gavere and Superprestige Diegem, but a crash left him with an uphill task at World Cup Hulst and following the Christmas period, Pidcock began to suffer from illness. Equally, Van Aert was never able to match Van der Poel, with the reigning world champion a level above this time around.

All three riders will be at the start line on Sunday at the CX World Cup in Benidorm, as Van Aert and Pidcock draw their 'cross seasons to a close, and Van der Poel looks to make it 11 wins from 11 races.

For Pidcock, the Brit is keen not to put any pressure on his performance. Rather, the race will provide one last opportunity to enjoy the support of the legions of 'cross fans, before turning his attention elsewhere.

"I am happy that I’m feeling myself again. I don’t have a specific goal for Benidorm but I will enjoy the race, the sun and the great crowds."

Mountain biking in La Nucía to precede road season

After his curtain call in Benidorm, Pidcock will be free to focus on his main objectives for 2024: namely, the Ardennes Classics, Tour de France and the Olympic Games.

Read more:

• Pidcock, Rodríguez and Bernal for the Tour de France
• Tom Pidcock leans into bike tech science with low tyre pressure and shorter crank length

A winter of fleeting cyclo-cross appearances was always designed to prepare his body for the upcoming season and the 24-year-old is content that a bout of illness will not hamper his ambitions.

"It doesn’t [set me back] because I was supposed to have a break after the CX season but now I’ve kept riding while also having some downtime in the process," Pidcock explained.

With a winter of sporadic, but beneficial, CX appearances behind him, and having sensibly chosen to avoid riding through sickness, Pidcock will now hope for a smooth run into the Ardennes Classics, where he will hope to challenge the likes of Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates) and Remco Evenepoel (Soudal Quick-Step).

Read more: Ineos confident Pidcock can challenge Pogačar and Evenepoel at Ardennes Classics

Pidcock is the reigning Strade Bianche champion, but finished second to Evenepoel at Liège-Bastogne-Liège last season, with the Belgian producing a blistering performance that blocked Pidcock from picking up his first Monument title.

For the coming campaign, Pidcock will follow a similar approach to last season and hope to go one better. Before that, though, he faces the Shimano Supercup Massi La Nucía in Spain, where Pidcock will be able to show off his rainbow bands as the MTB world champion.

"I will likely race mountain bike on 11 February before travelling on to the [Volta ao] Algarve, and then probably follow a similar road programme to last year."