(Image credit: Getty)
Tom Pidcock took his punishment on the chin after the opening stage of the Volta ao Algarve , arguing that his ‘push’ was an instinctive move but accepting it wasn’t the right thing to do.
The Ineos Grenadiers rider placed fifth as a surprise presence in the bunch sprint in Lagos but he was later relegated to the back of the peloton for raising his arm and pushing another rider in the final 200 metres.
Pidcock was moving through the field in a chaotic sprint and looking to thread through a tightening gap when he put out his left hand to nudge aside Luís Mendonça, who did not crash but was bumped out towards the barriers.
Pidcock was fined and lost his stage placing, but he was not docked any time on the general classification, leaving him well in the hunt for the overall title.
"At the end of the day it makes no difference because I’m on the same time, but I understand it," Pidcock told Cyclingnews at the start of stage 2 of the Volta ao Algarve.
"In that situation, it was just instinct. That guy was just closing on me and I was coming with speed and didn’t want to brake."I guess it’s the first race of the year and I’ve been used to training and you do stuff like that when you’re out with your mates training. I think I need to use my elbows more, but when you’re less than 60 kilos it’s quite hard […]
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