The cross country World Cup is heading back to Europe after a wild start in South Korea and, as the series returns to its home base, the stars are coming out. Tom Pidcock and Puck Pieterse already committed that they’ll race in Nove Mesto, the second World Cup XCO. Now, it’s confirmed that fans will be treated to a rematch between Tom Pidcock and Mathieu van der Poel.
The powerhouse Dutch star is making his 2026 debut, like Pidcock, in World Cup mountain biking. It comes after a few years where van der Poel has stayed further away from flat bars and big tires as his star rises (and rises, and rises) on the road. This despite repeatedly confirming he still has ambitions to win a world championship or Olympic medal in cross country.
Hints and a return? Mathieu van der Poel back at Nove Mesto
Van der Poel did drop hints he might be taking mountain biking more seriously. In his chapter of Shimano’s This is Home series that launched just ahead of Paris-Roubaix, the Dutch rider spent as much time on the mountain bike as Canyon’s new endurance race bike. Having Sterling Lorence and Anthill Films behind the camera might have swayed that. But the closing lines of that film made it seem like much less of a matter of editing.
Nove Mesto is a venue that van der Poel has mixed success with in the past. He’s won two short track (XCC) World Cups there in the past. In 2019 and 2021, which should serve as a reminder that the Alpecin-Premier Tech rider’s been at the mountain bike game for quite a while now. He’s also had some bad crashes at the iconic Czech venue.
Advantage Pidcock in Czechia?
That mixed past makes the looming showdown with Pidcock all the more thrilling. While van der Poel’s proved very successful on the road this spring, and absolutely dominated his cyclocross campaign all winter, Pidcock seems to have Nove Mesto’s number. The Briton has four XCO World Cup wins in a row in Nove Mesto and, after skipping the race in 2026, will be looking to match Nino Schurter’s venue record of five total wins.
Pidcock also already has both titles that van der Poel still chases. He is a two time Olympic XCO…
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