longslowdistance
Posts:2881
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| 09/24/2018 12:23 PM |
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Great course for an in form Nibali. Did not look great in Spain, but that might have been saving for Innsbruck.
Valverde will be there. |
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79pmooney
Posts:3180
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| 09/24/2018 01:01 PM |
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I'm routing for Mas or Alaphillipe. A Quick Step win brings LeFevere closer to the '71 wins of his 2000 season with Mapie.
https://www.velonews.com/2018/09/news/with-worlds-ttt-win-quick-step-moves-closer-to-lefeveres-season-record_479340
QS has been "on" all year. Yes the lost P-R but they completely dominated the rest of the cobbles. Been players at every GC. Viviani and Gaviria. And others. Great team support with "A" riders happily doing the work for teammates. With less than half the budget of that big team (and well under 10% of the controversy) they go about the business of riding and winning races. Biggest complaint - they win and dominate too many. But they do that much closer to the old way of riding all season. No, no one QS rider does that, but QS doesn't disappear after the classics are over or just line up who? and who? to fulfill UCI required races.
They lost one of the all-time greats and bounced back to a really fun team to watch. I'd love to see them podium the Worlds. Top two steps would be OK for me. (But put Alaphilipe on top. France needs that. It's time.)
Ben |
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79pmooney
Posts:3180
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| 09/24/2018 01:05 PM |
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Nibali was coming off that hard crash in the Tour and was riding the Vuelta for prep and no hopes of actually doing anything. I'd like to see him ride well Sunday. Valverde, now that would be cool. A win for a class act. (We need 4 podium steps.)
Ben |
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Orange Crush
Posts:4499
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| 09/24/2018 04:08 PM |
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Nibali has already passed the leadership hat to Moscon, who would be one of worst possible representatives cycling could imagine. Nibali's back was basically superglued together, no way will he be there in end. Even without crash that final pitch is a notch too steep for him I'd think. He rides like an older statesman now; still lots of grinta but no more super punch.
http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/vincenzo-nibali-abdicates-italian-team-leadership-to-moscon/
My sentimental pick is Valverde who won on a pitch like that in Vuelta (beating back Yates I believe). But it could be anyone who was in mix at Mur de Huy and who can handle 4k of vertical beforehand. |
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Cosmic Kid
Posts:4209
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| 09/25/2018 12:29 AM |
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Valverde was on fumes by the end of the Vuelta....don't know that he can recover in time to be in top form for such a brutal course. Under normal situations, he would be the 5-Star favorite.
Same with Nibali, but it is clear he doesn't have the form to win Sunday.
Alliphilippe is the overwhelming favorite right now, but I think the race is pretty wide open, more so than usual (despite the course being so hard). Adam Yates is someone to look out for....raced the Vuelta for 2 weeks, saving his energy for the final week and then rode hard for his brother.....could prep for a race 2 weeks later.
I would also watch Miquel Angel Lopez, although I have not heard anyone rate him yet as a favorite.
COuldn't imagine a worse scenario than if Moscon wins.... |
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| Just say "NO!" to WCP!!!!
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Orange Crush
Posts:4499
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| 09/25/2018 11:12 AM |
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Meanwhile...ding, ding, ding. I thought a sweep was something they only did in curling?
http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/uci-road-world-championships-2018/womens-elite-individual-time-trial/results/ |
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longslowdistance
Posts:2881
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| 09/25/2018 11:39 AM |
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| Very impressive. The winner has a fantastic tt position on the bike, no drag anywhere |
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Orange Crush
Posts:4499
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| 09/25/2018 12:18 PM |
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BTW - this guy looks to be cycling's next big thing. His winning percentage is amazing particularly considering he only started racing bikes in 2017. Major capture for QS to bring him into ranks. Perhaps too early too soon; that really depends on how the team manages him.
http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/remco-evenepoel-dont-call-me-the-next-eddy-merckx/ |
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79pmooney
Posts:3180
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| 09/25/2018 01:13 PM |
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OC, who is that guy who doesn't want to be called Eddy Merckx? CyclingNews doesn't like my Adblock)
Ben |
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Orange Crush
Posts:4499
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| 09/25/2018 01:52 PM |
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Ben - here's the first two paragraphs... he wins through solos typically. And he played for some good soccer clubs too.
Belgium's Remco Evenepoel won the junior men's time trial at the UCI Road World Championships by over a minute and will turn professional with Quick-Step Floors in 2019 without racing in the under-23 ranks. He has won 34 of the 44 races he has competed in over the past 18 months, a feat that has captured enormous attention in Belgium. Although the comparison is easy, Evenepoel does not want to be called Belgium's next Eddy Merckx.
Evenepoel only turned to cycling in 2017 after spending much of his youth playing football for the Anderlecht, PSV Endhoven and Belgian youth teams. His father was a professional cyclist in the early 1990s with the Collstrop team, and that experience helped his prodigious young son become the provincial, then national, then European and now the world champion. |
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longslowdistance
Posts:2881
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| 09/26/2018 08:59 PM |
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| Kudos to Dennis for his dominating win today. |
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Dale
Posts:1767
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| 09/27/2018 05:10 AM |
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| WC Road pick--- Alaphilippe |
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Orange Crush
Posts:4499
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| 09/27/2018 12:26 PM |
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Just wow...
"Remco Evenepoel (Belgium) steamrollered the opposition into submission to win the junior road title at the UCI Road World Championships, completing the double after winning the individual time trial earlier in the week.
The soon-to-be Quick-Step Floors rider was simply on another level to the competition in Innsbruck, almost single-handedly coming back from a crash and a lone chase on the climb of the Gnadenwald, before a string of attacks whittled down the rest of the field. Such was Evenepoel's dominance that the Belgian rode the final 19 kilometres on his own as the remnants of the peloton fought it out for the rest of the medals." |
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longslowdistance
Posts:2881
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| 09/27/2018 02:08 PM |
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| Is going straight to the pro tour the right move? |
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Orange Crush
Posts:4499
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| 09/27/2018 02:47 PM |
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| Time will tell. Apparently QS's initial idea was to have him ride at U23 Continental level for a year first but when Sky came knocking they had to up the offer. |
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