"San Remo is simple really. It’s the people who are fastest up the Poggio and then who can descend it well" - Tom Pidcock's blunt preview of 2024's first monument

With Tadej Pogacar and Mathieu van der Poel dominating the headlines pre-Milano-Sanremo 2024, Tom Pidcock is flying somewhat under the radar into the first monument of the season.

"I think I’ve been building well, I haven’t had any setbacks yet this year so I can take confidence from that," Pidcock says ahead of the race in quotes collected by Cycling Weekly. "San Remo is simple really. It’s the people who are fastest up the Poggio and then who can descend it well."

Whilst Pidcock's assessment of the race is essentially true, the Brit is well aware there is much more to Milano-Sanremo than just the iconic Poggio. "I think you need a team around you that can get you in there in a good position," the INEOS Grenadiers leader adds. "Although attacks on the Cipressa won’t surprise me this year to be honest."

"I would say I’ve only really raced Milan-San Remo once, that was in my first year, in my second year I was sick," he continues. "So it’s actually a race that I’ve not ridden so much but it’s one that I’ve always watched. I love this race, I’ve been in the south of France for one winter so I’ve ridden these roads a little bit as well even though that was a little bit of a while ago now."

"The team around me give me a lot of confidence actually," Pidcock concludes, referring to Filippo Ganna and Michal Kwiatkowski among others. "I feel having these guys behind me, they know what they’re doing and I can rely on them to get me in the position that I need to be in to be in with a chance of winning."