Tom Pidcock claimed that he will struggle in this winter's cyclocross against his nemesis Mathieu Van Der Pol (Alpecin Deceuninck) and Wout Van Art (Jumbo Visma), claiming that each has a physical handicap.

The Ineos Grenadiers racer clearly has no problems with his winter cyclocross form, and he took an impressive victory (his first of the season) in his third race of the season last weekend in Kortrijk.

And 24 hours later, he took on van der Pol in the Hulst World Cup, only to be foiled by a broken wheel.

However, the defending world champion claimed over the weekend that it was not easy to challenge the Belgian and Dutch stars in an off-road battle.

"I don't have the weight or power of Mathieu or Wout. 'It's hard to beat them in a race like this. He added, "But I'll keep trying, and the rainbow jersey will help a little bit."

Pidcock's coach, Kurt Bogaerts, admitted in a recent podcast on "The Play" that Pidcock's protégé, Kurt Bogaerts, has analyzed negatively the possibility of taking on Van der Pol and Van Art on the offroad.

"If it wasn't for them, Tom would have won more. He's on the podium a lot with them now, but it's hard for Tom to beat them," Bogarts commented.

"They have more absolute power, which helps in the mud and in the sand. Tom is a lightweight, not far from his tour weight of 58 kg at the moment."

Pidcock has already cast doubt on whether he will defend his world champion jersey next February. He will face Van der Pol and Van Art in the spring race.

In addition to the cyclocross doubts, Pidcock also has an intense road season ahead of him, with the spring classics followed by the Tour de France in July and the world championships immediately after.

He has the Omloop Het Nieuwsblad scheduled as his one-day opener, followed by the Maine Classics in March and April, Milan-San Remo, Flanders Classics, Tour de Flanders, and possibly followed by the Paris-Roubaix debut. Then the Ardennes Classics to close out the spring.

Pidcock is almost certain to return to the Tour de France after a brilliant debut this year, winning the Alpe d'Huez and finishing 16th overall in the white jersey. He hopes to challenge for the overall title in the future, and while 2023 may be too soon to tell, he will take a protected leadership role in Ineos Grenadiers.