Tom Pidcock is determined to end his cyclocross season on a high note before embarking on the next chapter of his career with Ineos Grenadiers.

The 21-year-old Briton is one of the stars of the men's race at the UCI Cyclocross World Championships in Ostend, Belgium, where he will battle Wout van Aert and Mathieu van der Poel in the elite men's race on Sunday.

Pidcock admits that he is a level below the two leading riders, but wants to get as close as possible to challenging for the rainbow jersey.

"To be honest, I don't think I'm at their level yet.

"I think I'm definitely getting closer and that's my ambition. I would love to be in their league, but at the moment they are two cyclocross guys. When I have a good run, people say, 'There are three kings in cross.' I want to make sure I'm at the top with those three. That's my ambition."

It has already been noted that the Ostend course has many sand sections, a feature that will be decisive in how the race unfolds. Pidcock admits that this is not his favorite course, but if the opportunity presents itself and he is in good shape, he plans to attack aggressively.

"Once I take the lead, I will go faster. Doing my own race is always the best way to race and the way I do my best."

"This course is sand and my last sand race was in Antwerp. This course is sand and my last sand race was in Antwerp. It's probably the worst course for me for the World Championships, but in the end, unless I make a lot of mistakes, the fittest racers will stay up there.

Pidcock officially became an Ineos Grenadiers rider the day after the last cyclocross race of the season, ending his time with the Trinity Racing team built around his cyclocross ambitions.

Although his road racing program has yet to be finalized, the young British rider expressed that he feels the transition to the World Tour season is a natural and progressive move at this stage of his career.

He has already had great success in under-23 road racing, and in 2020 he will have his first taste of the elite UCI Road World Championships in Imola. Signing with a WorldTour team solidifies his future ambitions on the road.

"This is the end of my journey with Trinity. It's a big race and I want to be proud of myself and the team. That's what's important to me. Finishing the season is a big deal and I get to go home and see my family for the first time in months. I'm looking forward to that, but I'm going to focus on the weekend."

"My first race in Ineos was supposed to be mountain biking, but that has now been postponed. I'm going to do mountain biking, road, and cross. That's the plan. Right now we're focused on the weekend and with the first couple of races postponed, I have no idea what the road program is going to look like. I think we'll start the opening weekend, but after that I don't know yet and we'll have to think about it after this weekend. I already feel very much at home in the team. As of Sunday, the first phase of my career will be over and the second phase is to go full pro with an elite team. That starts on February 1."