Other discipline Advantage

Does doing another cycling discipline or sport give riders an advantage in road races?

While cyclocross is a different discipline in cycling there are many riders that take part in both, some add mountain biking in as well. There is also some link between riders who have taken part in cross races or still do and being better riders on the road in races containing cobbled sections or gravel.

Perhaps the first names that come to mind as taking part in both road races and cyclocross each year are Mathieu van der Poel and Wout Van Aert. This pair are constantly riding against each other for wins in both disciplines and are among the best at both suggesting that doing cyclocross does give riders an advantage in road races.

However the pairing of Van Aert and Van der Poel are not general classification riders and are normally seen racing the cycling monuments and the classics as leaders. In grand tours they are supporting their team and doing their duties as domestiques. Crashes are still frequent meaning their bike handling skills are not perfect and there is room to improve.

Thomas Pidcock who has wins in both mountain biking and cyclocross has some wins on the road scene but far fewer than the big names in the sport. This suggests that there is no clear advantage.

There are riders within the peloton who have taken part in national cyclocross events rather than fully embracing the world events but it still gives them some advantage. Being able to handle a bike in trickier conditions has clear advantages when a stage or race is taking place in the rain causing the route to become slippery and hazardous.

On top of cyclocross riders coming from different sports entirely have different skills as a result. The downside is that they have a tendency to crash more often. Primoz Roglic, a former ski jumper was forced to leave that sport after a crash, now he crashes on a regular basis suggesting that he hasn't fully mastered the art of staying on his bike. Although, at the Tour de France this year he was not involved in any crashes, a miracle. Remco Evenepoel is another successful rider who came from a different sport, he spent his younger years playing football, he has also suffered significant misfortune in the world of cycling.

Overall there is no clear correlation between doing another discipline or sport and being better at road racing, there is not a smaller chance of injury either. It is just another opportunity to race.