The professional cycling thread
Discussion
Some Gump said:
Gizmoish said:
Panache.
2012 was an odd tour - lots of TT by recent standards and obviously Bertie was missing. So Sky could (with Porte, Froome, Knees and EBH supporting Wiggo) roll the Sky Train up the hills and ensure Wiggo didn't lose any time on GC, then gain a minute or more in each TT. Simple plan, worked well.
Why do people cheer Contador and say "Brad didn't have to beat him that year"? Alberto Contador wasn't at that tour because he was serving a ban for cheating.2012 was an odd tour - lots of TT by recent standards and obviously Bertie was missing. So Sky could (with Porte, Froome, Knees and EBH supporting Wiggo) roll the Sky Train up the hills and ensure Wiggo didn't lose any time on GC, then gain a minute or more in each TT. Simple plan, worked well.
But he's a hell of a bike rider.
pablo said:
Can you imagine if, with one lap to go in tomorrow's F1 race, they all stop racing and hold position to the finish? Odd isnt it?! 
No, but i can imagine at the end if Le Mans, Toyota's team boss approaching Audi, offering his congratulations and the offer of a ceremonial finish with the Toyota cars leaving a gap to allow Audi to do that.It's a French endurance thing, i guess.
Interestingly 2011 was the first race pace final lap of Le Mans since 1969!
I guess it's a case of the distance between first and second, rarely is there less than a lap in it so it would make no difference if it was a procession or race pace. I guess le tour is kind if the same, no one would get five minutes on nibbles on a fiat stage like this.
Go back to 2007 and 2010 and contador won both races by less than a minute. In 2008 Evans and Sastre were separated as the peloton split and Evans managed to pull back time on Sastre at the finish... Don't get me wrong I like the tradition and the sprint finish in Paris but a reverting back to a final day TT would at least mean it's a 21 stage race not 20
I guess it's a case of the distance between first and second, rarely is there less than a lap in it so it would make no difference if it was a procession or race pace. I guess le tour is kind if the same, no one would get five minutes on nibbles on a fiat stage like this.
Go back to 2007 and 2010 and contador won both races by less than a minute. In 2008 Evans and Sastre were separated as the peloton split and Evans managed to pull back time on Sastre at the finish... Don't get me wrong I like the tradition and the sprint finish in Paris but a reverting back to a final day TT would at least mean it's a 21 stage race not 20
pablo said:
They're both epic 
I wish the ACO would remove those damn chicanes on the Mulsanne straight though... think the FIA had something to do with that iirc.. pablo said:
Interestingly 2011 was the first race pace final lap of Le Mans since 1969!
I guess it's a case of the distance between first and second, rarely is there less than a lap in it so it would make no difference if it was a procession or race pace. I guess le tour is kind if the same, no one would get five minutes on nibbles on a fiat stage like this.
Go back to 2007 and 2010 and contador won both races by less than a minute. In 2008 Evans and Sastre were separated as the peloton split and Evans managed to pull back time on Sastre at the finish... Don't get me wrong I like the tradition and the sprint finish in Paris but a reverting back to a final day TT would at least mean it's a 21 stage race not 20
I don't have any problem with it being a procession followed by a sprint. It's the most prestigious stage for a sprinter to win - they'll rarely get the world title or the Olympic gold, so the Champs is it. I guess it's a case of the distance between first and second, rarely is there less than a lap in it so it would make no difference if it was a procession or race pace. I guess le tour is kind if the same, no one would get five minutes on nibbles on a fiat stage like this.
Go back to 2007 and 2010 and contador won both races by less than a minute. In 2008 Evans and Sastre were separated as the peloton split and Evans managed to pull back time on Sastre at the finish... Don't get me wrong I like the tradition and the sprint finish in Paris but a reverting back to a final day TT would at least mean it's a 21 stage race not 20
Joey Ramone said:
How much time would he have taken in the TT? He almost certainly wouldn't have beaten Martin today, and Nibali was still 4th, with absolutely nothing to ride for. So, tens of seconds, rather than minutes. And with Sky performing so badly as a team, he would have needed minutes in the bag.
Froome at his best wouldn't have been far behind Martin I don't think. I don't think he would have won but certainly over a minute. Congrats to Niballs and Yorkshire for about the only two highlights for a mind numbingly boring race - comatose levels equal to 2012. Good to see a possible future hope for the French in Pinot and Romain Bardet although they will have their work cut out to top the podium. Roll on the Vuelta, always a way more exciting race. Horner will kill everyone just to prove this sport is as ridiculous as ever.
okgo said:
Froome at his best wouldn't have been far behind Martin I don't think. I don't think he would have won but certainly over a minute.
Was Froome at his best? Didn't look it after that fall pre-tour. Have a look at Nibali's finishing position in every single TDF/Giro he's entered. Relentless improvement each time. And he won the Vuelta first time round. This victory was, statistically speaking, almost pre-ordained. Even more so with the Astana blanket round him. Sky got thoroughly out-Sky'd this time round.
Joey Ramone said:
Was Froome at his best? Didn't look it after that fall pre-tour.
Have a look at Nibali's finishing position in every single TDF/Giro he's entered. Relentless improvement each time. And he won the Vuelta first time round. This victory was, statistically speaking, almost pre-ordained. Even more so with the Astana blanket round him. Sky got thoroughly out-Sky'd this time round.
Yes, I think he was in fantastic shape. Have a look at Nibali's finishing position in every single TDF/Giro he's entered. Relentless improvement each time. And he won the Vuelta first time round. This victory was, statistically speaking, almost pre-ordained. Even more so with the Astana blanket round him. Sky got thoroughly out-Sky'd this time round.
In the Dauphine only contador could live with him, and he only just could live with him. The first mountain stage of dauphine Froome was a totally different league to anyone, Contador not too far behind. Obviously Froome crashed again, Bertie beat Nibali by nearly 2 minutes over 8 stages...
I don't think Nibali will get a look in when the others are back.
JuniorD said:
Tomorrow night, 9pm on RTE is Rough Rider, the documentary following Paul Kimmage over the last two years including the Tour.
I chipped in a tenner to his fund when the old UCI were trying to sue him (and we'll never see that again until that 
Aaron Brown is found dead! But I digress)Kimmage was right about Armstrong, he was one of the few journos prepared to stand up and it cost him a fair bit along the line. Kudos to him
But these days he's become just a gobs
te. The original salem witch trials. Throwing accusations all over the place like a machine gun. I had to unfollow him from Twitter he was annoying me so much with his latent accusations.Essentially if you've ever won anything. You're cheating
Ever met a doper at an event. You're cheating
Ever got the hump with journos constantly asking if you're cheating? You're cheating
Ever refused an interview with him? You're cheating.
Were you once a friend and now working for Sunday Times? You're part of the Omerta
Did you once say that if you were elected you'd sort this out? You aren't doing enough fast enough. Therefore you won't ever do anything and you're the enemy
It's ludicrous! Do I think no one in the TDF was doping this year? Of course not. Is Astana a tainted team because of it's management and history. Quite probably. Do I think that Nibali was clean though. Yes I do, he's been good for years so it's plausible he could do a GT a year and do well. (I don't think he would have won had others been there, but to finish first...)
He needs to do something a damn sight more tangiable to regain some dignity. Why is he not going after dopers with evidence, go through their bins, follow them around Spain and Italy. Shouting on Twitter is as much good as shouting at the moon.
okgo said:
Yes, I think he was in fantastic shape.
In the Dauphine only contador could live with him, and he only just could live with him. The first mountain stage of dauphine Froome was a totally different league to anyone, Contador not too far behind. Obviously Froome crashed again, Bertie beat Nibali by nearly 2 minutes over 8 stages...
I don't think Nibali will get a look in when the others are back.
Disagree - I think he will. Pre tour form is just that 'pre tour'. It is the actual performance during the tour that counts. In the Dauphine only contador could live with him, and he only just could live with him. The first mountain stage of dauphine Froome was a totally different league to anyone, Contador not too far behind. Obviously Froome crashed again, Bertie beat Nibali by nearly 2 minutes over 8 stages...
I don't think Nibali will get a look in when the others are back.
Nibali came 'on form' when it mattered. The rest is history. He showed in stage 2 his intentions by getting away and getting the yellow jersey.
In adverse conditions, he showed superior bike control by err keeping it upright!! This was reiterated up by Lemond comments - first you have to keep the bike upright!
Froome crashed quite a few times and Contador once/twice iirc.
Also on stage 5 which was arguably the toughest/most dangerous stage Nibali put in a super performance and put what over 2 mins on Contador.
It was a tall order then for Contador to make up as he had a lot to do that would force him to attack.
I personally think Nibali was up there with the very best.
He's has shown all round adaptability and can excel in any condition, these are the essentials of what make a GC contender.
Horner gave him a shoeing for christ sake, and everyone now thinks this guy is the best GC rider in the world, less than a year later despite being beaten by Horner and since then in every race he did but the one where the best two riders fell off, and the other best climber didn't enter? Nah, not for me.
I don't disagree that he did well to keep it upright and all that, but cobbled rainy stages are not going to be common in GT's.
I don't disagree that he did well to keep it upright and all that, but cobbled rainy stages are not going to be common in GT's.
Gassing Station | Sports | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff