Did a freak mechanical cost Tom Pidcock a shot at Tour de France stage victory?

Britain’s Tom Pidcock finished third on Stage 9 of the Tour de France yesterday, his highest placing so far in this year’s race, but did a freak mechanical issue cost him the opportunity to compete for the win?

The stage was won by multiple-time Classics winner and former world champion Mathieu van der Poel, who outsprinted Tobias Johannessen – sixth overall in last year’s Tour de France. Pidcock was given the same time but he never looked like challenging the top two in the finale.

 

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The hilly stage was shortened due to extreme heat, and a 16-rider breakaway was formed with 95km (59 miles) remaining after a series of unsuccessful attacks. The break was gradually whittled down as the race hit the climbs. Van der Poel attacked on the final climb, and only Pidcock, Johannessen and Alex Baudin were able to follow.

Pidcock’s woes began on the descent following the final Category 4 climb. You could see him unclip his right foot from the pedal and kick his rear derailleur before looking backwards and gesturing in frustration that he had a mechanical issue. The Yorkshireman was clearly not happy.

Pidcock did manage to chase back and was holding his own within the lead group, but Van der Poel bossed the final kilometre and never really looked like he’d finish anything but first despite a rapidly advancing chase group.

Van der Poel is, of course, one of the world’s best riders on road, cobbles, cyclo-cross, gravel, mountain bike, you name it, but could Pidcock have put in more of a challenge if he didn’t have a mechanical issue?

Pidcock’s Pinarello Q36.5 team ride Pinarello Dogma F bikes fitted with SRAM Red AXS groupsets.

The team said, “With the race entering its decisive phase, Pidcock’s challenge almost came to an abrupt end.

“A small piece of asphalt mixed with bitumen somehow became lodged inside the right-hand lever, preventing it from making the normal movement required for shifting.

“Nothing had broken. With approximately 24km (15 miles) remaining, Pidcock managed to free the chain and get the bike moving again. However, although the drivetrain was operational once more, the piece of asphalt remained lodged inside the lever, preventing him from using the full range of gears for the remainder of the stage.

“Despite the obstruction, Pidcock fought his way back to the front of the race, where the stage ultimately came down to a four-man battle for victory.

“Unable to use all of his gear ratios on the uphill finish into Ussel, the British rider nevertheless produced another outstanding effort to sprint to third place after more than 150km (93 miles) of committed, attacking racing.”

Tom Pidcock himself said, “For a moment I thought my race was over, but I managed to get the bike going again and keep fighting until the finish.”

Quite a positive take given the circumstances, then.

Pinarello Q36.5 team says, “While it is impossible to know how the final sprint might have unfolded without the obstruction inside the right-hand gear shifter, the incident was undoubtedly a significant factor, preventing Pidcock from using the full range of gears in the decisive moments. Full credit goes to stage winner Tim Wellens, but the circumstances make Pidcock’s podium all the more remarkable.”

One (pretty major) point: it was Mathieu van der Poel who won the stage. You couldn’t miss him. He was on the top step of the podium, did the post-race interviews and everything. Tim Wellens came in 40th.

Anyway, that’s the explanation from Pinarello Q36.5: a piece of asphalt lodged inside Pidcock’s right-hand lever meant that he was unable to use the full range of gears for the remainder of the stage.

You can set up SRAM Red shift-brake controls to work in various ways, but the usual procedure for changing gear is to push the shift paddle on the right control to move the chain down the cassette, push the shift paddle on the left control to move the chain up the cassette, and push them both at the same time to move the front derailleur (Pidcock’s bike was set up 1x).

If Pidcock had his system set up in the usual way, asphalt in the right-hand lever could have prevented him shifting down the cassette to a smaller sprocket.

How did he shift at all? When interviewed after the finish, Pidcock said that although the main right-hand shift paddle – which sits just behind the brake lever – wasn’t working, he was able to shift from the hood. A SRAM Red AXS shift-brake control comes with a Bonus Button on the hood that provides an auxiliary shift option (which can also be used as an ANT+ device control). It looks like Pidcock was still able to use this Bonus Button to finish the race – although its position means that you can’t shift from the drops.

What of Pinarello Q36.5’s assertion that “the piece of asphalt remained lodged inside the lever, preventing [Pidcock] from using the full range of gears for the remainder of the stage”?

Pidcock explained things after the finish line by saying, “Once I got to the sprint, I was focused, and I just instinctively was on the drops, and I couldn’t change gear anymore, and then I had to go on the hoods.

“So it’s a shame. I tried to let Mathieu [van der Poel] lead the last kilometre. Obviously, he was the fastest in our group, so he would need to go early if the bunch was coming. But they were not close enough, so in the end, it was a short sprint. And I don’t think I would have come around him anyway.

“I’m not so disappointed. Mathieu will be very hard to beat in those situations. You do what you can. I’m quite happy. I’m just pleased that I could change gear in the end, and that I was not in the peloton. At least I was there sprinting for the win.”