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Overheated Tom Pidcock headbutts competitor in Hulst

Photo by: Twitter
December 30, 2023
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Tom Pidcock had a bad day in Hulst on Saturday. After mechanical issues off the start, the Ineos racer fought his way through the field to finish 25th. His tactics getting there, though, are turning heads. Pidcock headbutted a fellow rider as the two crested a small rise together, crossing a line in his fight for position in the frantic cyclocross start.

Hulst isn’t the first time Pidcock’s had to work his way through a field. Since the Ineos rider mixes road and cross country mountain bike calendars in the warmer months, the XCO world champion has frequently found himself at the back of a World Cup start grid. Usually, he’s managed to make his way to the front effeciently and with little extra rubbing of elbows beyond what’s expected in a crowded XCO start.

In Hulst, though, Pidcock appeared to forget his place. Or, maybe, just lost his cool. The Ineos rider, who has already declared he is not racing world championships this year,  was caught on camera headbutting fellow racer, Ville Merlov, as he fought his was into … 73rd place. Not exactly the behaviour befitting a world champion and representative of the sport.