Tom Pidcock: It’s so nice to see Egan Bernal smashing it again

Tom Pidcock (Ineos Grenadiers) claimed tenth place in Liège-Bastogne-Liège on Sunday and it was a case of what might have been for the Amstel Gold Race winner after an untimely mechanical forced the Brit into a frantic chase that would eventually cost him.

The race also saw Pidcock’s teammate Egan Bernal play an aggressive role after Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates) launched his winning attack on the Côte de la Redoute with a successful 35km solo move.

Read more: Liège-Bastogne-Liège: Tadej Pogačar wins with 35km solo attack

Bernal finished 21st but garnered praise from Pidcock, who has seen first-hand how the former Tour de France winner has bounced back from the crash that almost cost him his life in 2022.

“I said to him now, it’s so nice to see him smashing it again,” Pidcock said at the finish in Liège.

“He’s been through more than I can probably imagine and it’s really nice to see.”

The performance saw Bernal continue his remarkable return in 2024, which has yielded third place at the Volta a Catalunya, seventh at Paris-Nice and third at O Gran Camiño. The 27-year-old is yet to take a win since returning from his life-threatening crash suffered at the start of 2022, but Bernal believes he is already back to his best.

"I think right now, if we look just at the numbers, I am even better [than before the crash], it's just that other people are also better. That is how this sport is, we have to improve every season to be with the best," he told Wielerflits after Sunday's race.

"I go now to Romandie and then I will prepare for the Dauphiné and from there, hopefully the Tour de France."

What might have been for Pidcock after futile chase

Pidcock came into the final Monument of the spring with his tail up after winning Amstel Gold Race last weekend. He was forced out of La Flèche Wallonne early due to the bleak weather but admitted that he has been setting all-time records in training in the build-up to Sunday’s race.

Read more: Two wins in two days for Ineos Grenadiers: 'Like waiting for a bus and two come along at once'

However, after avoiding a crash, a mechanical with just under 90km to go forced the British rider onto the back foot and he was forced to chase through several groups before regaining contact with the front of the race.

Whether he could have matched Pogačar’s searing pace is unknown but the efforts made in the second half of the race certainly took their toll on the Ineos leader.

“I didn’t crash but I punctured straight afterwards, at the worst possible second that it could have happened. It was really frustrating. I put in a massive effort there. I went really deep there, and I killed my legs. I didn't really talk too much before the race but this week I was setting all-time records in training this year. I was going really well.

"Of course, the crash is unfortunate but at the same time, we were out of trouble then. We were all putting in the effort to position ourselves, we were all through there safely and then it all went to shit. I used a lot to come back. First, I came back and then I’d worry about the rest of the race.”

Read more: Mathieu van der Poel: ‘I don’t know how I got to the podium’ in Liège-Bastogne-Liège

In the sprint for the minor placings, Pidcock took tenth on the line to end his road campaign for the spring. It wasn’t the result that the 24-year-old had been hoping for but he acknowledged that it was bad luck that hampered his race, rather than poor form.

“It’s okay. The sprint was really hectic as well. I wasn’t even sprinting, I was boxed in as well. I just wanted to find my way to the front. The legs are good, I know that, but it’s frustrating. It is how it is. With Egan there we had two cards that we could play in the final. Who knows what would have happened if it had gone smoothly?”

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