"It was like a war zone": Pidcock succumbs to the heat of the Tour

Tom Pidcock arrived at the third stage of the Tour de France 2026 as one of the riders best suited to the explosive finish at Les Angles. However, the Briton finished completely empty even before the decisive moves began. The intense heat, with temperatures reaching nearly 39 °C for much of the day, marked a stage that the Pinarello Q36.5 rider described as one of the toughest of his entire career.

Tom Pidcock: “I don’t think I’ve ever raced in such a tough race with so much heat”

Pidcock crossed the finish line in 16th position, 18 seconds behind the winner, Tadej Pogacar, unable to respond to the attacks on the final climb after nearly five hours of effort in sweltering heat. After the stage, he explained to Cyclism’Actu that the main rival of the day was not any rider.

“The big story of the day is the tremendous heat that was present throughout the stage. I don’t think I’ve ever raced in such a tough race with so much heat. It was ridiculous.”

A constant struggle to survive the heat

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The extreme conditions turned the day into a true test of endurance. Beyond the sporting battle, the cyclists had to continuously fight to stay hydrated, something that Pidcock summarized with a very graphic image.

“It was like a war zone. Everyone was trying to get bottles. I think today the peloton used about 10,000 bottles.”

The Briton’s statements come after a Tour that had already shown how far teams were pushing the limits of cooling strategies. Ice vests, cold water immersions, or different protocols to lower body temperature had been the focus leading up to the first stages, but on the road, the heat became a decisive factor once again.

Out of strength at the key moment

After being very active in the Barcelona stage alongside his team, this time the scenario was very different. The Pinarello Q36.5 opted for a more conservative approach while the UAE Team Emirates-XRG took control of the peloton to set up Pogacar's victory.

Pidcock believes that very few teams would have been able to maintain that pace during such a demanding day.

“They clearly gained a lot of confidence from what they did yesterday and thought they could control the race again. And they could do it. I think they are the only team capable of controlling a stage like today’s. They did it for a reason and it worked out for them.”

When the final ascent to Les Angles came, the Briton had already paid for the accumulated fatigue.

“I simply had nothing left for the end. I was completely cooked.”

Although he lost his chances of fighting for the stage victory, Pidcock remains well positioned in the general classification after the first three days of the Tour. The British rider occupies 11th place, 1:22 behind the new yellow jersey, Tadej Pogacar.