"Van der Poel, Mads Pedersen and Quinn Simmons" - Giulio Ciccone takes aim at rivals who let World Championship title go
Cycling
Giulio Ciccone was the leader of the Italian team, who had depth but used it to pursue the early danger-move of the day. The Lidl-Trek rider believed victory was possible for the group pursuing Brandon McNulty, but was left disappointed with the lack of work from some of his rivals.
The race proved to be chaotic. When the first splits took place and the group of Mathieu van der Poel went up the road, the medals looked to be escaping the clutches of Italy - who despite their depth, hadn't placed a rider up front.
Although Ciccone was not rated a main favourite when up against the likes of Isaac del Toro, Paul Seixas and Remco Evenepoel who rode side by side, it were Christian Scaroni and Davide Piganzoli who did a big share of the work during that critical moment of the race.
Towards the final laps, as Brandon McNulty launched his winning attack, Ciccone was still alive and well in the group behind. On the final ascent to Mount Royal, he went on the attack one final time.
Tom Pidcock and Giulio Ciccone in action at the 2026 Montreal World Championships
Ciccone and Tom Pidcock went on the attack in a desperate final attempt to close down the gap and challenge for the rainbow jersey. At the top of the climb, it even looked like the American was within reach and the race could have another big change.
"On the climb, I tried with [Tom] Pidcock, but the energy was done. For a moment, I believed that because we could see McNulty was 20 seconds [ahead]; we had a gap, and with Pidcock we had the interest to go full gas."
But as soon as other riders caught up from behind, the collaboration went down the drain. A group of two doubled in size with Isaac del Toro's arrival; and then turned to 11 by the time the riders reached the final minutes of the race.
"I feel sorry for the result. I think we deserved more, sincerely. In the finale, the cards got reshuffled, and we had riders like [Mathieu] van der Poel, Mads Pedersen and Quinn Simmons, who weren't interested in closing the gap and did not collaborate to close it down," he adds.
Ciccone disappointed after a strong race
Ciccone on his part put in the performance that was hoped of him by the Italians, attacking the climbs and being in the mix all the way to the end even within a brutal race - in terms of climbing and duration.
"I said last week that the World Championships are an open and tactical race. We reshuffled so many times. It was a very difficult race tactically, and you cannot follow everyone".
In the end, Ciccone rode to a ninth place at the finish line, not having the same punch as the faster riders present in the group. A sour taste to his race, as happened with the likes of Remco Evenepoel and Paul Seixas.
"I'm disappointed about the results. It's such a hard race. We were present, and we had a good performance, I just feel sorry for the results."
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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