"I was getting really frustrated..." - Tom Pidcock honest about missed opportunities but happy with final Andalucia win
Cycling
Tom Pidcock has, like in 2025, started his season off with great form, but was unable to take much benefit from it. It took seven race days but the leader of Pinarello Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team has taken his first victory in the season and has been able to final raise his hands in celebration after a few missed opportunities.
The Briton after all committed to a start to the season in Spain, where the races were hilly, the weather sunny and the competition more modest than at the UAE Tour and Volta ao Algarve. But the wind at the Vuelta a Murcia ruined his plans; with UAE Team Emirates - XRG taking the opening stage win, preventing his late attack from succeeding.
But the second stage was cancelled and he didn't have the opportunity to get his revenge. Shortly after at the Clasica Jaen Paraiso Interior, he was once again anticipated by UAE and had to settle for second place. In Andalucia he was on the attack and showed good legs, but he and Pinarello were not present on Iván Romeo and Andreas Leknessund GC-winning attack on stage 2.
Hence the overall was gone, even though once again he was the strongest on the road, as proved today in the arrival to Llucena. The peloton headed into the final hilltop in position to fight for the win and Pidcock's uphill attack was strong enough to drop some of the world's best puncheurs directly, and soar to his first win of the stage.
Tom Pidcock at the 2026 Vuelta a Andalucia
End to a frustrating start to the year
"It feels great, yesterday I was getting really frustrated that we trained so hard this winter, we made a big commitment, we went to Chile... We put in so much work and yeah we missed opportunities here," he said in an honest post-race interview.
In regular conditions, the overall classification could've been won if it was to be decided today, but the Briton was already far behind the eventual winner Iván Romeo. He laments the decisions made on that day: "We made the mistake of judging the parcours here, it wasn't perfect and we let the GC go on one day and I was getting frustrated that we wasted opportunities".
However, before he makes the trip to Belgium for Omloop het Nieuwsblad; and then Italy for the much-awaited Strade Bianche where he should be Tadej Pogacar's biggest rival, he has taken a much-needed win which boosts his confidence.
"Today we took it, the team was great and I finished it off, it makes it all worth while. It's easy to get into the season now that there's one victory in the pocket, so it pushes off a little bit [of pressure]," he concluded.
Rúben SilvaEditor-in-Chief
A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
Beyond editorial work, he has been closely involved in the expansion and coordination of CyclingUpToDate’s wider network, helping establish and support sister platforms across multiple languages. This includes ongoing collaboration with CiclismoAlDia (Spanish), CiclismoAtual (Portuguese), WielrennenUpToDate (Dutch), and RadsportAktuell (German), contributing to a shared editorial vision and consistent international coverage.
He also helps oversee editorial governance across the network, setting standards for accuracy and consistency and coordinating updates or corrections when needed.
Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
Within 18 months of launch, he helped grow CyclingUpToDate’s English-language platform into one of the most-read cycling news websites, built entirely from the ground up. As both a professional journalist and lifelong cycling enthusiast, his focus remains on delivering accurate, timely, and well-contextualized coverage.
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- POG1, another nice doc about our favourite, I watched most of it with a big smile on my face (except for the bits about his crashes 😢 obvs!).Lozza14-11-2026
- Martinez had a good year! 5th at the Tour was a great result for him, albeit largely through getting in successful breaks, but he held it better than Pidcock who’d done the same.Lozza14-11-2026
- guess what Valgren, you're 34, and no you're not good enough. sorry to say.mij14-11-2026
- I'm a sepp fan and like to think he earned that LOL, indulge me : ) I think Jonas was fine. Roglic did not want to concede to Sepp. and I don't think you ever attack your own teammate in the leaders jersey if he is holding his own, which Sepp just about was.mij14-11-2026
- enough time? he's 24 years old. He's won 10 races over the last 2 years and some are significant. I won't argue about his attitude being good - it needs to improve. But with some coaching and mentorship he has a lot of winning ahead of him and has plenty of time to win a GT. I don't think he will ever beat Tadej, but everyone else is fair game Look at Mas and Valverde - they were 31 and 29, respectively, when they won the Vuelta.mij14-11-2026
- Pogacar has a fine head on his shoulders.Careful investments and a couple of coffee shops sounds like a wonderful way to chill after an intense career.Stay healthy GOAT.
Brucegel14-11-2026 - I live in Maribor.PogiSloFans14-11-2026
- I live in Ljubljana and often go on trips in the surrounding area, where I frequently see young cyclists in 'Pogi Team' jerseys training, either alone or in groups. By simply motivating so many young people to take up cycling, Tadej has already achieved something truly significant.Velijo14-11-2026
- That's an excellent point. It's interesting that Vader came to that realization only after he learned that his contract wasn't going to be renewed.
santiagobenites14-11-2026
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