Tom Pidcock might have four years of WorldTeam experience, but he and Q36.5 have punched above their weight at the Vuelta a España.
Gruber Images, Cor Vos
Tom Pidcock has done a great deal of developing throughout the Vuelta a España. To call it a ‘coming-of-age’ event would be to discredit several years of top-tier results, including a Tour de France stage win on Alpe d’Huez, but his exploits at his sixth Grand Tour have described a transition for the young Brit.
In fact, what we’ve witnessed of Pidcock this past month has in a way validated the ProTeam’s amusing styling of their riders as ‘research scientists’; Q36.5 has built a team around a singular goal (and person), and actively learning from their findings has delivered in spades. The experiment has worked.
Rarely was that more clear than on stage 20, the final GC showdown that culminated at altitude about 70 km north of Madrid. The 39 seconds that separated Pidcock and Jai Hindley going in made the Australian, already a Grand Tour winner, a major threat to Pidcock’s podium spot, but despite several nervous moments on the super-steep gradients of the Bola del Mundo, the Brit was never distanced by more than a few bike lengths, and in the end he only lost a handful of seconds to his rival in the final kick to the line.
“I don’t really know what to say, to be honest, I’m pretty proud of myself. I think it’s definitely the biggest performance of my career,” Pidcock told TNT after securing third overall on stage 20. “It’s maybe not my biggest single win, I think some have been more special, but – I’m a bit exhausted actually, to be honest, so I can’t really find any words.”
Pidcock has seemed to get stronger throughout the three-week race with some of his best performances coming in the last few days. He took a few seconds on stage 17’s summit finish, then delivered maybe the time trial of his life a day later. A relatively easy flat stage 19 then set him up perfectly for the weekend and what he described as essentially “a one-day race” to the steep finale.
“This morning I was super up for today,” Pidcock said after stage 20. “It’s just really hard to find a rhythm on such steep climbs, and with that surface as well, but I knew I was still in control. I didn’t want to go over my limit, all I had to do was, you know, stay within that and not blow.”
Pidcock hung on admirably on the demanding upper slopes of the Bola del Mundo.
And now there’s just one day left; it’s time to celebrate.
“I think the best thing is that now I can just relax, you know. Day after day you’re so focussed, focussing on everything and making sure you’re switched on for the race every day. Now I’m enjoying that I can just sit here, I don’t need to put this bloody jacket on, and drink cherry juice and have a disgusting recovery shake.”
There’s plenty to celebrate for Q36.5 just nine months into the Pidcock Project.
The GC Experiment
Pidcock signed with Q36.5 Pro Cycling team in December 2024, finalising a storied breakup with the Ineos Grenadiers team with which he’d launched his road cycling career in 2020. The step down a level to ProTour meant that the calendar might look slightly different, but for Tom, little would change, he’d still race many of his favourite events like Strade Bianche and the Ardennes Classics, and while the Tour de France would remain out of reach for likely a year or two, Pidcock’s very presence on the team put them front and centre in the battle for Grand Tour wildcards.
And most importantly, Pidcock was king.
Tom Pidcock is Q36.5’s ticket to the big time
In an exclusive interview, team boss Doug Ryder explains how Q36.5 convinced Pidcock to come aboard and what it means for the second-division squad.
The experiment got its first phase underway at the AlUla Tour, and it started well. Pidcock won two stages and the overall, with fast man Matteo Moschetti taking the closing day’s sprint in stellar company that included Dylan Groenewegen and Alexander Kristoff – a rising tide lifts all boats.
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