Tom Pidcock went rogue for the Worlds - 200g-lighter wheel switch revealed after Montreal Rainbow Jersey gamble
CyclingWednesday, 30 September 2026 at 14:45
Tom Pidcock went to Montreal chasing another rainbow jersey and, it turns out, even his usual Pinarello Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team equipment was not guaranteed a place on the start line.
Rather than race the World Championships on the Zipp wheels supplied to his Pinarello Q36.5 trade team, Pidcock switched to a set of Partington R-Series wheels from the Australian manufacturer. There was no attempt to disguise the move either, with the Partington branding clearly visible throughout Sunday's elite men's road race.
The 50mm R-Series setup Pidcock appears to have used is listed at around 1,200 grams, approximately 200 grams lighter than the Zipp 454 NSW wheels he usually races.
His tyre choice followed the same theme. Pidcock paired the wheels with 30mm Vittoria Corsa Pro Speed tubeless tyres, normally marketed heavily towards time trial use and low rolling resistance, while Partington's wheels use carbon fibre spokes rather than the steel spokes found in his usual Zipps.
World Championships offer riders a rare chance to step outside their normal sponsor commitments because they are representing their countries rather than trade teams. There was a time when seeing riders turn up at the Worlds on different wheels was nothing particularly remarkable, but it has become far less common as equipment deals and team setups have grown increasingly integrated.
Pidcock was relentless in his attacking, but ultimately missed out on the medals
Everything pointed towards one big shot in Montreal
The World Championships had been circled as one of Pidcock's major opportunities long before Sunday.
Tadej Pogacar was absent after the injuries that ended his season, opening up a race that would otherwise have revolved heavily around the defending champion. Pidcock also arrived in Canada fresh from another mountain bike world title earlier in September and had spoken openly about what adding the road rainbow jersey would mean.
It would have been, in his own words, “truly amazing”.
Read also
France set about making the race brutally hard from distance and the attacks kept coming long before the final laps. Pidcock then hit the deck, chased his way back and was still right in the middle of things when Brandon McNulty launched the move that eventually won the title.
The American attacked with around 33 kilometres remaining and built an advantage of more than a minute before the final lap suddenly brought him back within reach. Pidcock was one of those still trying to finish the job. Along with Giulio Ciccone, he helped drive the chase on the final ascent of Camillien-Houde as McNulty's advantage tumbled towards ten seconds. The momentum behind disappeared again once they crested the climb.
The presence of Matteo Jorgenson and Quinn Simmons gave the United States two more cards in the chasing group, while Pidcock was also frustrated by Isaac del Toro's reluctance to fully commit with his UAE Team Emirates-XRG trade teammate McNulty alone up the road.
McNulty found his rhythm again and reached the line 13 seconds ahead of Michael Matthews and Mathieu van der Poel. Pidcock eventually finished seventh after an afternoon spent crashing, chasing back and still trying to drag himself into the medal fight. “There isn’t much more I could have done,” he said afterwards.
A few days on, the Partington switch adds another detail to just how seriously Pidcock had targeted Montreal. Whether 200 grams made any measurable difference after 274 kilometres, a crash and more than six hours of racing is impossible to say.
The rainbow jersey escaped him in Montreal. If another similarly open World Championship comes around, it will be interesting to see whether Pidcock goes rogue again.
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.
claps 0visitors 0
Just in
Popular news
Latest comments
- for the better he doesn’t racemij30-09-2026
- true, but remco seemed to win in spite of WVA that day. they just are not getting great results when teamwork is needed.mij30-09-2026
- I kept thinking the same thing - that he was being isolated by his own team with pointless attacks so early. Especially when you know MVDP is going to thin out the herd with a big attack. He already said he was going to, and he did.mij30-09-2026
- It's not a great translation, but I think what he's saying is that Remco is exceptional when in training he can imagine the roar of the crowds as he wins, as he has said himself. With WVA as co-leader, he could not mentally prepare like that.Hills3330-09-2026
- Absolutely!Lozza30-09-2026
- Agreed. He has to say something controversial to justify his pay cheque.Cyclingsbestfan30-09-2026
- Why wouldn't your team boss congratulate you? It's a big deal to have a world champion on your team.Cyclingsbestfan30-09-2026
- As a World Tour team, surely Picnic Post NL will get an automatic invite to any and all grand tours and World Tour races regardless of their position in the pecking order of UCI points at the end of this season.Lozza30-09-2026
- Yes, this time I agree with you... the best team was the american team. Chapeau to them.PogiSloFans30-09-2026
- Yes, I bow to Pogi, with respect. You bow to your orange orangutan maga president... the most hated person in the world.PogiSloFans30-09-2026
Loading
Write a comment