Tom Pidcock lashed out at the UCI after his World Championship title: "Bullshit, unfair: you can't do it like this"

Tom Pidcock managed to seize the Mountain Biking World Championship in a spectacular way on Saturday, which meant coming full circle for the Brit: becoming a world champion in his own country was what he wanted. "This feels really amazing," he said afterwards.

Immediately after the finish, Pidcock looked for friends, family, and those who had supported him on his path to this victory. Then he climbed into the stands for a photo with the ecstatic home crowd in Scotland, part of the United Kingdom. "It was amazing here," he said afterward to the press in Glentress Forest. "Many years ago, I came here to mountain bike with my father, it's a really beautiful place. It reminds me of Yorkshire."

"It feels good, it's really a huge relief," continued the versatile rider of INEOS Grenadiers. "It's been a long week, and it's very special to be able to win in front of my home crowd. That's also why I went into the crowd for a photo after the race," explained the now reigning Olympic and world champion in mountain biking.

However, Pidcock was not solely able to enjoy the victory. "Only in the last part could I really let it sink in, I had a lot of stress in the final rounds. Sam Gaze was coming up, and I had to hold him off. I rode well, but there was also a problem with my bike. Something was loose, and I saw Sam coming... phew, so I couldn't really enjoy it."

Pidcock: "Mentally, the World Championships after the Tour aren't easy"

Pidcock had to make significant choices recently, as he possesses talents in all facets of the sport. "I would have liked to have competed in the road race; it was a great race to watch," said the Brit. "But mentally, it's not easy to focus on an event like this World Championship after the Tour de France. I need a vacation now, and only after that will you see me in my rainbow jersey. I'll still ride a few World Cups and the test event for the Paris Olympics."

Finally, Pidcock also commented on the fuss about his starting position, sharing the opinion of his 'fellow victims' Mathieu van der Poel and Peter Sagan: he didn't think it was necessary. "It's just bullshit, right? It wasn't for me; they just put me next to someone who should actually be standing behind me." The man from Yorkshire was supposed to be in row seven but was now placed in row five.

Pidcock was also annoyed that his name was mentioned as a possible cause, as they would have wanted to move him further forward as a Brit. "It's unbelievable, I also sacrificed three weeks of preparation for the Tour de France to be able to mountain bike. That way, I could score points, and then they suddenly change that rule. You can't do it like that; it's unfair," he directed his words at the UCI.