Mads Pedersen to miss World Championships: 'I'm close to reaching the limit'

Career-best form had prompted many people to list Mads Pedersen as one of the men's favourites at September's Road World Championships, but the Dane has told Cycling Weekly that he will be opting out of the race in Australia.

The 2019 world champion has enjoyed a highly-successful season including the winning a stage of the Tour de France and placing second three stages in a row at the current Vuelta a España.

But the Trek-Segafredo rider will not be on the Danish flight down to Australia at the end of September, instead preferring to finish his season after the Vuelta.

His form has been strong all season and he has shown himself capable of getting over hilly terrain and then challenging in reduced sprints, therefore promoting him as one of the most-fancied for the race in Wollongong.

But ahead of stage seven of the Vuelta, Pedersen, 26, confirmed to Cycling Weekly: "I'm not doing the World Championships.

"After the Vuelta I will already have had 85 race days [ed - 82 race days] and I also have a wife and a life at home.

"This is a lot of travel days and at one point I will reach the limit. I am already closing in on that limit.

"To go straight from here to Australia is not ideal, and I prefer instead to go home."

The news will come as a major blow to Denmark who have already been informed that Tour de France champion Jonas Vingegaard will not be present Down Under.

Vingegaard is taking an extended break from racing after struggling to cope with the attention and spotlight placed upon him since winning his maiden Grand Tour in July.

Pedersen, meanwhile, only sits nine points shy of Sam Bennett in the Vuelta's points classification, and he confirmed that he will continue to try and secure the green jersey.

"Every point I will try," he said. "The system is build a little bit weird because in the bunch sprints the winner gets 50 points and second place 30 points, so that's already a big difference. I have to reach out for every point I can get."

Regardless if Pedersen, a winner of six races this season, wins the classification or not, he is using this race to build towards an eventual attempt at the Tour's green jersey.

He added: "One day for sure I will try to aim for that green jersey, but it depends on the course. I cannot tell you that next year will be the year, but for sure one year I will try for the green in the Tour."