Pidcock dominates everyone to become XCO World Champion again in 2026

Tom Pidcock has been crowned XCO World Champion 2026 in Val di Sole after an extraordinary race. The Brit started late on the grid, managed to ride around 30th position, and had to make his way through some of the best specialists in the world before breaking away alone at the front. A comeback that turned into a display and allowed him to conquer his second XCO world title.

Pidcock comes from behind to claim his second XCO World Championship

The XCO World Championship 2026 arrived with one of the strongest line-ups in recent years. The equality shown throughout the season and the presence of practically all the top specialists in the discipline, in addition to Tom Pidcock and Mathieu van der Poel, made the race in Val di Sole one of the most anticipated.

The start was precisely one of the critical moments of the race. Pidcock and Van der Poel, two of the main candidates for the rainbow jersey, began from the fifth row and needed to get through the traffic as soon as possible to prevent the World Cup specialists from opening up gaps.

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Both managed to advance without incidents, and at the start of the first of the eight laps, they were already riding around 30th position. Although it may have seemed very far back, the difference to the front was then just 16 seconds. The real problem was the huge number of cyclists they had ahead of them.

The start loop had left a very compact group, with Martin Vidaurre, Riley Amos, Adrien Boichis, and Luca Martin alternating at the front. Jofre Cullell was also managing to stay among the best.

Pidcock quickly began his particular comeback. The Brit, known to still be carrying some fatigue from the Tour and who had suffered some falls while training, passed more than ten riders during the first lap and quickly put the front group within reach.

Van der Poel, on the other hand, began to lose ground compared to the Brit.

Pidcock starts to make his way to the front

With the race already established over eight laps, a first group formed at the front with Boichis, Martin, Azzaro, Vidaurre, Avondetto, Aldridge, and Lillo. Pidcock was in the chasing group 16 seconds back, while Van der Poel was further back, around 22nd position and 25 seconds behind.

The way Pidcock was coming back soon became one of the great spectacles of the race. His agility in overtaking, the power with which he closed gaps, and the confidence with which he moved through the traffic demonstrated that, although he hardly competes in MTB during the season, he remains among the best in the world in this discipline.

In the second lap, the powerful French selection continued to take the initiative. Luca Martin, Mathis Azzaro, and Adrien Boichis shared the front group with Charlie Aldridge, Martin Vidaurre, Cole Punchard, and Dario Lillo.

Pidcock was already chasing them practically alone.

It was a delicate move. The Brit had to close the gap with the leaders but do so without expending energy that could prove decisive during the second half of the race.

As Pidcock approached the front, Van der Poel's options seemed to complicate. The Dutchman was riding behind Jofre Cullell, with both occupying positions 17 and 18, about 54 seconds from the leaders.

Aldridge breaks the race and Pidcock completes his comeback

As the race reached its halfway point, another protagonist emerged. Charlie Aldridge launched a very hard pace change that managed to break the first group.

Only Vidaurre, Boichis, and the big surprise of the day, Cole Punchard, could stay with the Brit. But just behind, Pidcock was already appearing.

In the fourth lap, he was fifth and was about to reach the front. Further back, another group had formed with Lillo, Martin, Azzaro, and Avondetto.

The fifth lap began with what few would have imagined after seeing the first positions after the start: Pidcock was already in the front group.

He had completed the comeback.

Now the big question remained: to know how much the effort had cost him and if he still had the strength to contest the victory during the final laps.

Alongside him was also one of the great revelations of the race. Cole Punchard, who had also started from the fifth row, even led the World Championship after completing his own comeback.

Pidcock spent a few minutes at the back of the group, apparently recovering from the enormous effort made to catch up with the leaders. But the respite didn't last long.

Pidcock attacks and begins to eliminate rivals

In the sixth lap, the Brit launched a powerful attack that definitively strained the race.

Punchard was one of the first to give way, while Boichis, Aldridge, and Vidaurre fought to stay with the Brit.

Pidcock had also found a perfect terrain to make differences. Every time the circuit pointed uphill, he increased the pace. Vidaurre particularly suffered in those sectors and had to take advantage of the descents to recover the meters he lost on the climbs.

Until another attack came.

Pidcock accelerated again uphill, and this time who could not respond was, to everyone's surprise, Adrien Boichis. The Frenchman, a great reference of the season and newly crowned Short Track World Champion, lost contact completely.

In just a few meters, Pidcock, Aldridge, and Vidaurre managed to open 17 seconds on Boichis.

The seventh lap began with an unexpected situation: there was no Frenchman among the top three. Pidcock and Aldridge led for Great Britain alongside Chilean Martin Vidaurre.

But Pidcock was not done yet.

No one can keep up with Pidcock

Another attack from the Brit ended up dropping Vidaurre. Only Charlie Aldridge managed to stay with his teammate during the penultimate lap, while Boichis continued to lose ground until he fell to fifth position.

Aldridge was holding on extraordinarily, but the longest climb of the circuit became the chosen stage for Pidcock.

The double Olympic champion set a pace there that his compatriot could no longer follow.

For the first time in the entire race, Pidcock was alone at the front.

When the bell rang announcing the last lap, the Brit already had 10 seconds over Aldridge. Punchard was in third position 38 seconds back, while Vidaurre, who had suffered a flat tire, was fourth at 59 seconds. Boichis was fifth at one minute.

Pidcock had turned the World Championship upside down. Not only had he come back from the rear positions on the grid, but all the riders who had tried to follow his attacks were beginning to pay for the effort.

 

 

 

 

 

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Tom Pidcock, XCO World Champion 2026

The last lap became a showcase for Pidcock and a survival exercise for those riding behind.

The Brit maintained the lead and arrived solo at the finish line in Val di Sole to be crowned XCO World Champion 2026.

This is his second XCO world title, achieved after another spectacular comeback. Pidcock once again demonstrated that his limited mountain bike calendar does not prevent him from competing and winning against the best specialists in the world when he returns to the discipline.

The double Olympic champion started the first lap around 30th position, navigated through the traffic, caught up with a front group made up of the main protagonists of the World Cup, and once there, eliminated rivals with his attacks until he was completely alone.

Val di Sole once again showcased that Tom Pidcock remains one of the great references in world XCO even competing very few times a year.

From behind, Charlie Aldridge completed the British one-two by crossing the finish line second, 17 seconds behind Pidcock, while the big surprise of the day, Canadian Cole Punchard, took bronze, 31 seconds back, after even taking the lead at one point in the race.

Martin Vidaurre finished fourth, while Adrien Boichis, one of the standout riders of the season, had to settle for fifth place. Mathieu van der Poel finished 30th.

2026 Elite Men’s XCO World Championship Top 10

1. Tom Pidcock (GBR) — 1:25:26
2. Charlie Aldridge (GBR) — +0:17
3. Cole Punchard (CAN) — +0:31
4. Martin Vidaurre (CHI) — +0:59
5. Adrien Boichis (FRA) — +1:06
6. Mathis Azzaro (FRA) — +1:47
7. Dario Lillo (SUI) — +1:54
8. Filippo Colombo (SUI) — +2:02
9. Fabio Püntener (SUI) — +2:04
10. David List (GER) — +2:08