Pinarello has introduced that Tom Pidcock will proceed to race on their bikes off-road, however he’ll use a Scott bike in street races after his switch from Ineos Grenadiers for Q36.5 for 2025.
It is uncommon to see a sole rider, particularly one as excessive profile as Pidcock, combine manufacturers throughout totally different disciplines however Pidcock has a three-year-deal with Pinarello, that matches his three-year contract with Q36.5.
Both the workforce and Pinarello are managed by billionaire Ivan Glasenberg , who is anticipated to bankroll Pidcock’s arrival at Q36.5. The deal may result in Pinarello sponsoring Q36.5 sooner or later however this has not been confirmed.
Pinarello stated Pidcock’s use of their bikes is proscribed to cyclocross, mountain biking and gravel. Pinarello express states that “The solely events he is not going to compete on a Pinarello will likely be throughout street occasions.”
Q36.5 has an settlement with Scott bikes and Syncros parts till the top of 2025 and confimed that Pidcock will swap to their street bikes.
On the continued use of Pinarello, Pidcock stated: “To me, our relationship feels extra like a partnership than a sponsorship. I’m wanting ahead to the following three years of racing and creating extra nice bikes with Pinarello.”
Given he was instrumental within the growth of the Crossista cyclocross mannequin, and latterly the Dogma XC mountain bikes it appears the Italian model was eager to maintain its star rider ‘within the household’ a minimum of to some extent.
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Pidcock may also nonetheless play a developmental position in new fashions, these being the Crossista that he gained a world championship aboard, the Dogma XC, upon which he secured an Olympic gold medal, and likewise the Grevil, the model’s gravel bike, although Pidcock hasn’t dipped his toe into gravel racing as but.
We have seen photographs of the Ineos riders in new equipment for 2025, however they’re all nonetheless aboard the Pinarello Dogma F, the model’s solely all-rounder race bike. Given the model has been with Ineos, and previously Team Sky for a substantial amount of time it could be that a couple of workforce will race aboard Pinarello bikes for the primary time. However, the workforce’s contact with the Italian bike firm ends on the shut of 2024, so regardless of the case we’ll know very shortly.
The murky waters of sponsorship agreements are cleared barely if you perceive that the Q36.5 clothes model, and the related biking workforce, are owned by Ivan Glasenberg, a South African businessman who additionally owns a controlling stake in Pinarello, buying all however 20% of the corporate (retained by Fausto Pinarello) from L Catterton in 2023 for a reported €200m.
It is just not uncommon for star riders to deliver huge identify sponsors together with them as they alter groups. It was lately reported that Specialized would turn out to be the bike sponsor of FDJ-SUEZ, following the switch to the french workforce of Dutch celebrity Demi Vollering from SD-Worx. The switch of Pauline Ferrand-Prévot to Visma-Lease A Bike nonetheless is seeing the French a number of world champion aboard a distinct bike model; Cervélo, on this case.
What is uncommon is a rider on any workforce utilizing a motorcycle of a distinct model to his workforce sponsor, even off-road. Pidcock has performed this previously, notably utilizing unbadged BMC mountain bikes in competitors previous to the event of the Dogma XC. Wout van Aert and Marianne Vos spent one cyclocross season persevering with to make use of Bianchi Zolders regardless of Jumbo-Visma already making the transfer to Cervélo for causes of consistency, however they have been a minimum of repainted within the colors of Jumbo-Visma.
Scott nonetheless already makes a hardtail, used to nice impact by Nino Schurter in recent times. It doesn’t have a cyclocross bike, however does have gravel bikes in its vary. Perhaps if the wheels are in movement for Q36.5 to maneuver to Pinarello for 2026 it’s merely simpler to permit Pidcock a single season of distinction earlier than bringing the remainder of the workforce underneath the umbrella.