'The strongest guys are all from the WorldTour'- Tom Pidcock ready to race Gravel Worlds Championships just 24 hours after Il Lombardia

Tom Pidcock is ready for a final weekend of ambitious racing as he makes his debut at Il Lombardia in Italy on Saturday and then targets the Gravel World Championships in the Netherlands on Sunday.

The Q36.5 team leader will dash for a flight north after battling with Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) and Remco Evenepoel (Soudal-QuickStep) on Saturday. The final Classic of his road season is his primary goal but a chance of adding a gravel world title to those in cyclocross and mountain biking is also enticing. Pidcock would be the second rider and first male to become the elite world champion in cyclocross, cross-country mountain biking and gravel, joining Pauline Ferrand-Prévot.

He has the fitness and bike skills for the fast Limburg course.

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"Riding the Gravel World Championships was always a goal this year but then the date changed to the day after Lombardia but we said 'F*ck it, lets do it anyway," Pidcock told Cyclingnews after a final recon ride of the hills route of Il Lombardia from Como to Bergamo.

"Lombardia is the priority and then I'll do what I can in the gravel worlds.

"I saw that I've been given race number 1, so I've got an even bigger target on my back, so it won't be easy to make a difference but we're going to try."

The Gravel World Championships were scheduled for October 18-19 but organisational problems forced the UCI to find new organisers in the Limburg hills of southern Netherlands where the Amstel Gold Race takes place.

"Tom wanted to end the season on a positive note and off-road racing gives Tom a good feeling," his Q36.5 directeur sportif Kurt Bogaerts told Sporza.

“They didn't make it easy for us by changing the location and date but it's also important for Tom to ride Lombardia for the first time because it's a race that should suit him well in the future."

2024 men's winner Mathieu van der Poel is absent from the Worlds but the start list includes new European Gravel Champion Mads Würtz Schmidt, former WorldTour rider Romain Bardet, former cyclocross rider turned world-class sprinter Tim Merlier, 2023 World Champion Matej Mohorič and talented Classics and cyclocross riders such as Tim Wellens, ​​Tibor Del Grosso, Quinten Hermans and 2022 World Champion Gianni Vermeersch.

"The strongest guys are all from the WorldTour, so my rivals will be familiar for sure," Pidcock suggested.

Heading for Il Lombardia

Pidcock made his debut with Q36.5 in January, winning the AlUla Tour after his divorce from Ineos Grenadiers. The British team 'deselected' Pidcock on the eve of last year's Lombardia, sparking a successful move to Q36.5.

The Yorkshireman was consistent all season in the Classics and stage races. He was left frustrated after failing to win a stage at the Giro d'Italia but impressed at the Vuelta a España, finishing third overall. He also scored an impressive haul of UCI ranking points that should ensure Q36.5 get an automatic invitation to all the 2026 WorldTour races, including the Tour de France.

Pidcock was tenth in the Road World Championships in Rwanda and second in last Saturday's Giro dell'Emilia and still has energy and ambition.

"I feel better after doing the Worlds. Before I felt blocked and perhaps didn't get the balance right between resting and training after the Vuelta. After a hard day at the Worlds, I feel like I've opened up for the final races of the season," Pidcock explained.

"If I end up on the podium at Lombardia I can be super happy. We did the recon on Wednesday and I felt really good.

"Like most people, I'm battling with the usual fatigue, but hopefully I can have a good final weekend of racing."