Tour de France: Tom Pidcock targets stage wins and GC success ahead of Bilbao Grand Depart – ‘I want to achieve both’

Tom Pidcock is feeling confident ahead of the Tour de France and is targeting stage wins and winning the general classification.

The Ineos Grenadiers rider is ready to jostle with the likes of Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates) and Jonas Vingegaard (Jumbo-Visma) for the yellow jersey, hoping that his experience on the mountains will give him an ideal start.

Stage 1 will see riders take part in a hilly opener going to and from Bilbao, which takes in 3,300 metres of vertical gain.

“I want to make a step up in riding GC and I want to aim for stages. Personally, I want to go for stages as my main priority, but still focussing on GC. Like I’ve said before, I want to try and win from the lead group or the favourites group and not from the breakaway which then keeps me on GC.

“I think I am in good shape. I know from training in the past week that I’m going pretty good. Going into the first stage of a Grand Tour is always a bit of a question mark, but I think my preparation has gone much better than last year as I managed to get through it all without getting Covid.”

With this year’s first two stages taking place in the mountains, Pidcock believes this could be a good leveller at the start for the GC contenders more equipped for the sprint section of the race.

“I can see it being a very select group, maybe a group with just leaders in it,” he added.

“There could be opportunities for someone to clip off and then win solo… I’ll see what happens and then decide how I’m going to race.

“I think the first two stages are going to be an opportunity where a lot of riders are going to already be looking, including myself, to try and win straight off the bat.

“I think after that it’s about re-evaluating and reassessing where to go. I don’t particularly want to look past these first few days in the Basque Country at the moment.”

The first two mountainous stages will be particularly crucial for Pidcock, as he believes these are what can bring him closer to the likes of Pogacar and Vingegaard.

“In the mountains is where I think I can make that step. That’s where I’d like to see myself improve. I’m a light rider so it should suit my characteristics, but longer efforts are where I can make the biggest step. In that case I can then make a step up in the GC and also my general performance in the Tour.”

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