The time-trial at Tirreno-Adriatico has been thus far the only stage to make the difference, and today the riders tackle the one mountain stage of the race. Inbetween were two hilly days where Tom Pidcock wanted to try and make the difference, but yesterday’s stage 5 saw a nagging headwind block the race on the final climb.
“To be honest, I don’t think we got a truly representative picture of everyone’s form here. Because of the rain, the race moved in slow motion on stages 3 and 4. The power output was never really high, and the sprints weren’t of top quality either. I think the last few days will give a better indication,” the Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team rider said in a post-race interview after his sixth spot in Pergola.
The day features two short climbs towards the end which featured some steep gradients, but there were no significant attacks in the peloton. It was in fact Pidcock himself who made a move, but in the very last meters of the climb where opening gaps was no longer possible.
“Yeah, it was definitely a test, but it was really unfortunate that there was a headwind on the final climb. That allowed a lot of guys to survive in the peloton, but I’m really happy with how the team rode. That was great to see”,” he continued. On the descent Pidcock pushed but wasn’t able to create the difference he hoped for. Because of the conservative racing, Fredrik Dversnes from the breakaway survived, and the Briton was left sprinting for minor places.
“To be honest, my legs felt a bit blocked and heavy, but once the racing really started, I felt much better. The two rainy days definitely took their toll. I also hadn’t scouted that descent—it was way too dangerous with the wind, so I didn’t take too many risks,” he concluded.
