Tom Pidcock will ride Strade Bianche for a fifth time on Saturday. As a former winner, one of the most skilled off-road riders in the sport, and runner-up to Tadej Pogačar last year, the Briton naturally aims high every time he travels to Tuscany.
Pidcock is in his second season with Pinarello-Q36.5, and he and the team appear to have improved year on year. The team's core Classics squad prepared at altitude in Chile for 25 days in February.
Pidcock was left frustrated in his early races and at last week's Omloop het Nieuwsblad, but won a stage at the Ruta del Sol. His natural confidence is on the rise.
"I'm always good here just because it's one of my favourite races, I love the race so much, so I want to perform," Pidcock said in Siena on the eve of Strade Bianche.
"Obviously, we want to try and win, but we obviously know how hard that's going to be, how ambitious that is. If I can battle with Tadej for a little or for a long time, that's a positive. If I end up on the podium, that'd be a good result."
Pidcock has the self-belief and talent to at least try to stay with Pogačar. He will be watching the Slovenian on the long mid-race gravel sector once again, but has seen other possible race scenarios and key rivals.
When asked about the competition, Pidcock said, "I think the field is perhaps a little bit stronger than last year."
Isaac Del Toro is obviously on a different level since the Giro last year, and Paul Seixas is coming, showing how talented he is this year.
"We'll see how Decathlon play it, while we know how UAE will play it. They don't need to be too secretive about their tactics. It's going to be an interesting race."
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