“Those guys were laughing at us” – Teammate explains why Tom Pidcock struggled on Opening Weekend
Cycling
The image jarred with the narrative of the past month. After a sharp block in Spain and a stage win at the Vuelta a Andalucia, Tom Pidcock arrived at Opening Weekend as one of the more intriguing names on the startlist. By Saturday evening at Omloop Het Nieuwsblad, he was 48th and never a factor in the decisive moves.
The explanation, at least internally, is more physiological than tactical.
Speaking to IDL Pro Cycling, teammate Fred Wright offered a blunt assessment of what went wrong for the Pinarello Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team group, who had prepared at altitude in January.
“In Chile, we were laughing while watching the snow and rain in Europe,” Wright said. “But those guys were laughing at us on Saturday.”
The Chile factor
Pidcock and a small group of teammates had opted for an altitude camp in Chile at the start of the year, trading winter miles in Spain for warmer temperatures and high elevation stimulus. The early signs were promising. Pidcock finished second at Clásica Jaén and then won the final stage of Andalucia on his way to third overall.
Belgium was a different shock entirely. “I really suffered in the cold,” Wright admitted of Omloop. “Normally, I’m pretty good in those conditions, because I’ve always trained through the winter in recent years. But in Omloop it was genuinely grim.”
Pidcock himself described a “beginner’s mistake” with clothing and dealt with a mechanical and bike change once the race had already begun to split. By the time the key selections formed, he was on the back foot, and there was no way back into contention.
For Wright, the issue was less about form and more about adaptation. “The effect of the altitude camp is really good, because I feel great in training,” he said. “An altitude camp ahead of the classics is really nice in that sense, because it means you’re strong in the races you actually want to be strong in.”
That last line is telling.
Pidcock has had success in early 2026
Bigger targets ahead
Opening Weekend matters, but it is not the sole axis around which Pidcock’s spring turns. Strade Bianche and Milano–Sanremo loom larger in his programme, with the Ardennes to follow. His early-season results in Spain suggested the engine is there.
“If you’ve got a guy like Tom, you love riding on the front when he does things like he did on the final day of Ruta del Sol,” Wright said with a grin. “I’m really looking forward to the rest of the season.”
Wright also pointed to a shift that is less visible on the results sheet. “I don’t think the altitude camp itself was all that different in pure training terms — but mentally it was refreshing to do something completely new,” he said. “Physically we’ve taken a step, but mentally as well.”
That sense of renewal echoes the broader narrative around Q36.5 this season. Pidcock’s move has placed him at the centre of the project, and the team’s approach appears built around freedom rather than constraint.
Wright was explicit about the draw. “Tom was one of the main reasons for me to come to this team,” he said. “We’re racing again like we used to — without stress. That’s what we want to do all year.”
Opening Weekend, then, may prove less a verdict and more a temperature check, literally. The bodies that adapted to altitude and the Spanish sun must now readjust to northern Europe in February.
If the Chile block delivers where it is meant to on the gravel roads of Strade Bianche or on the Via Roma in San Remo, the memory of being laughed at in Flanders will fade quickly.
For Pidcock, the spring narrative is still being written.
Kieran WoodDeputy Editor-in-Chief
Kieran Wood is a sports journalist based in Wales and has been active in journalism since 2022. He regularly contributes to DartsNews.com and CyclingUpToDate.com, where he covers professional cycling and darts. In cycling, his work includes liveblogs from major races, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España, alongside race reports and analysis. He has also conducted interviews with professional riders.
His reporting spans the full racing calendar, from one-day classics to stage races, with a focus on accurate, real-time coverage and clear contextual analysis. For statistics, results, and historical context, he regularly uses resources such as ProCyclingStats. To support reporting on rider activity and training context where relevant, he also references Strava.
In his work, Kieran places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles as new, verified information becomes available.
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