"I’m glad I showed I’m stronger than Mathieu van der Poel on the mountain bike" - Tom Pidcock
Mountain BikeMonday, 31 August 2026 at 18:30
Tom Pidcock won the mountain bike world championships this weekend in Val di Sole, effectively succeeding in what Mathieu van der Poel has been attempting for years. The Briton has spoken to the media following the race, ahead of his return to road racing.
As usual, Pidcock raced in May on the off-road discipline, winning the Nové Mesto World Cup. The Briton hadn't competed in the discipline ever since, focusing on the Tour de France where he rode into a Top10 position. Pidcock, like van der Poel, then put his emphasis on the MTB worlds in Val di Sole, Italy.
Both riders started from the fifth line, but whilst van der Poel struggled and didn't put on a display like the previous week; Pidcock did. The Briton overtook most of the field throughout the race and then managed to drop the competition to take a solo win - his second world title, after he did the same back in 2023. These have been added to his two Olympic and European titles.
Tom Pidcock won the 2026 MTB World Championships
Pidcock stronger than van der Poel once again
Pidcock beat compatriot Charlie Aldridge and Canadian Cole Punchard. In a post-race interview, he paid tribute to the Tarling family after this month's tragedy at the Volta a Portugal.
In a press release issued later on, the Briton spoke about what the race meant to him: “Along with the Tour de France, this World Championship was the main goal of my season".
Asked about Mathieu van der Poel, the Briton expressed pride over another top performance. “I’m glad I showed I’m stronger than Mathieu van der Poel on the mountain bike. But I think he’s stronger than me on the road. Still, someday I want to win a world title there, too.”
Tour of Britain up next for Pidcock
Pidcock's success after departing Netcompany INEOS hence continues. Earlier in the year he won Milano-Torino and was second at Milano-Sanremo; won stages at the Vuelta a Andalucia and Tour of the Alps; and also won the Andorra MoraBanc Clàssica ahead of the Tour de France.
With Tadej Pogacar's injuries, Pidcock has become one of the prime favourites for the upcoming World Championships in Montréal. This week, he will be present at the Tour of Britain where he will be one of the headliners.
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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- It would be a powerfull team if he did sign up with Ineos. Onley's future is looking good. Carapaz and Onley would make a great climbing double act. Would it be enough though to topple Pogacar the GT king?Cyclingsbestfan31-08-2026
- Good onTom MVDP needs more time on MB to get up to his level on cyclo cross. Such a pity all the hype about VDP losing rather than Tom winning ans thrashing the fieldpaultryan200231-08-2026
- Getting your finger to click on the link is the point. Just like me you were drawn to the headline. It's more commonly called clickbait. I'm surprised you have to ask, as you do similar with all that faff about Pogicar that you post.Cyclingsbestfan31-08-2026
- You've lost me there? You would need to explain your thinking on that comment.Cyclingsbestfan31-08-2026
- Maybe if fans would crowdfund Alpacin’s losses that might happen. The Tour is the reason cycling exists commercially at all and riders no longer have to work for peanuts.Mistermaumau31-08-2026
- Yeah but you can’t suppose there was NOBODY who saw anything. Someone didn’t do what any leading rider should. Not saying there needs to be blame but the lack of focus was more likely elsewhere.Mistermaumau31-08-2026
- It doesn’t even pay the paper it’s sent on.Mistermaumau31-08-2026
- I suspect nothing has actually changed to the previous truth, just adding froth?Mistermaumau31-08-2026
- We don’t know he’d have avoided injury even with two hands on deck or whether it might have been avoided or worse but the take is very badly developed. Of 10 riders close up to others riding ahead of them, half will be focused on debris one side and half on the other, that’s a matter of luck. Some will see and signal, some won’t see or can’t/won’t signal, that part makes you dependent on others so also mostly luck. The only part not down to luck is deciding to drink at a moment when you’re not able to take corrective action in case of emergency (for which you should always be prepared). For me, the most interesting question therefore is why he chose to drink at such a moment. Other than that, it’d be interesting to hear from all the riders ahead regarding who saw what or who was signalling or even tried but couldn’t without creating risk, if anyone. Some were maybe lucky it wasn’t them, it’s not because you didn’t hit it that you saw and avoided, others are maybe partly responsible because they saw it but didn’t signal. The primary reason is definitely not lack of focus at that moment because with one hand off and drinking (for which you usually turn your head/eyes upwards away from the road) there is nothing you can focus on properly.Mistermaumau31-08-2026
- Agreed. Would genuinely love to see this, MVDP back to his best MTB’ing and facing off against Pidcock.anonymouscyclist31-08-2026
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