Tibor Del Grosso's silver medal at the Cyclo-cross World Championships was a result of a strategic move. He admitted to putting pressure on Thibau Nys during the final hill of the last lap, forcing a mistake that allowed him to secure the silver medal. This was Del Grosso's first elite appearance, and he had been a rising star in the under-23 category for the past two years. His race strategy was to help his teammate, Mathieu van der Poel, split the race in the opening lap, which ultimately led to van der Poel's historic eighth world title.
Del Grosso's performance was impressive, and many have compared his talent to that of his team leader, van der Poel. However, the 22-year-old believes that it's an 'unfair comparison' to make of the two. He spent the 2025-2026 'cross season riding in the elite ranks for the first time and against van der Poel. Del Grosso's goal is to become World Champion in the elites one day, and he's confident that he belongs in the top of the sport.
Despite his success, Del Grosso is still a novice in the professional cycling world. During his first season as a professional on the road with Alpecin-Premier Tech, he won a stage in the Tour of Turkey. He will now take a 'short rest' before preparing for his road race season, which he says will start at the beginning of March. The youngster wants to 'be good' in the spring Classics but isn't sure which races he would be riding.
