“I’m in good shape, but I was last year and I crashed at the Cipressa” - Tom Pidcock boosts confidence with Milano-Torino win as Sanremo showdown looms large

Tom Pidcock struck the perfect balance between confidence and caution after his Milano-Torino victory, underlining both his form and the unpredictability that awaits at Milano-Sanremo in the days ahead.

Having timed his late move to perfection on the Superga climb, the Brit emerged from a chaotic and aggressive finale with his second win of the season. But despite the result, his immediate reflections pointed less to dominance and more to the fine margins that define racing at this level.

“It shows I’m in good shape, but last year I was in really good shape, and I crashed at the bottom of the Cipressa,” Pidcock said in conversation with Cycling Pro Net, referencing his previous experience at Milano-Sanremo and the risks that come with it.

The win itself did not come from a position of total control. Pidcock admitted the sensations throughout the race were far from straightforward, describing a day that felt unusually difficult despite the eventual outcome. “It was a weird day. It felt like the first race of the season, almost. With the race rhythm and all the accelerations all day, it felt a bit heavy-legged. Luckily, at the end, I had a kick there and could hold them off.”

Those same themes carried into his immediate broadcast interview, where he pointed to the difficulty of reading the finale, particularly alongside Primoz Roglic. “Primoz is hard to read. He’s always in the saddle. I was expecting him to be good there, and I was hesitating to attack near the end. Everyone was looking pretty strong, but I knew at one point I had to go.”

Back in his more detailed post-race breakdown, Pidcock explained how he managed the key phases of the race, particularly when Roglic first accelerated. “He attacked, and he attacked quite hard. Obviously, I knew it was a long way to go, so I didn’t really want to go into the red.”

He then outlined the moment he chose to respond. “With around 300 to 500 metres from the top, I thought I should probably close him because I knew I had no teammates left. So I closed the gap, and once I did that, I thought, ‘Okay, now we need to try and get to the finish.’”

That effort brought him back into contention, but the race remained unpredictable, especially when Adrien Boichis briefly moved clear and disrupted the rhythm of the group. “I was a bit nervous when Boichis attacked. I thought he was going to start riding and pretty much let the wheel go. Everyone was kind of there alone, apart from two EF guys, but they were not working together. So it was a bit of a weird scenario.”

When the race regrouped and surged towards the final climb, the objective became clear. “When the group came back, and we came into the climb really fast, I knew we were racing for the win.”

With Milano-Torino secured, attention now quickly shifts to Milano-Sanremo, where Pidcock is expected to be among the key contenders once again.

Despite his current form, he was quick to underline how little certainty exists in a race defined by positioning, timing and risk. “No, I think Milano-Sanremo is very different. It’s very explosive. Of course, it shows I’m in good shape, but being in good shape doesn’t mean everything,” he said in conversation with Cycling Pro Net.

Reflecting on his previous experience, he pointed again to how quickly things can change. “Anything can happen. It’s one of my favourite races, and I hope I can be there at the front. We know what’s going to happen on the Cipressa, so we’ll do our best.”

For now, the form is there and the confidence is building. But as Pidcock himself made clear, Milano-Sanremo will not be decided by legs alone, and the margin between control and chaos remains as thin as ever on the roads to the Cipressa and Poggio.