Only a fool would brush aside Tom Pidcock’s chances.
That’s the message from Pinarello Q36.5 Pro Cycling after the Briton rode himself into contention as a potential Tour de France podium finisher following a gutsy ride on stage 13.
The 26-year-old was the highest-placed GC rider in a huge 57-man break as the peloton headed away from central France and east into the mountains. Before the flag dropped, he was 11:49 down on the yellow jersey of Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) and 7:43 adrift of Remco Evenepoel (Red Bull-Bora-hansgrohe) in third.
Just over four hours of racing later, and after finishing third in Belfort, Pidcock had jumped from 10th to fourth overall, now sitting just nine seconds shy of Evenepoel.
This weekend poses arguably the two toughest tests to date, with the Vosges mountains set to be the setting for high-stakes action which will almost certainly produce another reordering in the GC.
As he proved at the 2025 Vuelta a España when he finished third overall, Pidcock can climb in the high mountains and maintain his form in the last week of the race. So did the likes of Red Bull-Bora-hansgrohe and Lidl-Trek make a needless mistake in letting Pidcock back into the podium picture?
“I don’t think you should ever underestimate a double Olympic and double world champion,” Doug Ryder, manager of Pinarello Q36.5, told Cycling Weekly. “He’s a great rider and he showed last year at the Vuelta that he can sustain three weeks of high-level riding.
“Tomorrow is a tough day and we’ve got to see how he recovers from today. He’s not making things easy for himself as he likes to ride really hard, but we’ll take it day by day, and see how he feels and how he’s going.
“It’s such a tough last week that you can easily lose 10 minutes in a stage – you could lose 10 minutes on Sunday in Paris if your legs aren’t great – so there’s so much to race for. But that’s cool.”
Pidcock’s main goal on the road from Dole to Belfort was to win the stage, in what would have been first since he won at Alpe d’Huez on debut at the 2022 Tour. He and his other breakaway companions were unable to bring eventual victor Mauro Schmid and Harold Tejada back into the fold in time, but Pidcock was still the day’s big winner.
“For sure Tom is disappointed he didn’t win, I’m sure of that, but in the end you’re on a fine edge with both options. I don’t think he did anything wrong in terms of going for a stage win,” Ryder said.
“I’m really happy for him because as a team we went all in today and they committed everything to go for a stage win. The bonuses that come with that are great for Tom and for our team.”
However the next eight stages play out, Pidcock will not change his approach. “What’s lovely about him and our team is that we’re still creating excitement in this race and I think it brings another perspective and dimension into this race,” Ryder added.
“And that’s what I love about Tom: he’s an impact rider and when he does something he does it with purpose, and that’s pretty cool to see.”
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