104TH LIÈGE-BASTOGNE-LIÈGE 1.UWT April 22nd, 2018

[Velolover2]

The course need to change. Tried to design a Liege route for the likes of Nibali, Roglic, Pinot and Dumoulin but it could be a reduced sprint as well. Hopefully the extra kilometers and the climbs being closer to each other would make it a bit harder. What do you guys think?

 

[Roude Leiw]

Did not know that Eurosport now shows live footage of Sunday group rides. When does LBL go live?

 

[Frankschleck]

Liege has dissapointed since 2012. Hope it is a better race this year.

 

[Brullnux]

Re: Re:

Matthews to win this.

Ala and Bala are dumb enough to wait for the final. They will regret it when their teams have towed Gerro 2.0 to the line.

Did Matthews sleep with your girlfriend or something? Your hate for him is excessive

It's justified. NEVER FORGET: https://www.ridemedia.com.au/interviews/michael-matthews-the-amstel-gold-race/

That was weird (maybe a mistake??) and I don't like matthews either but it's been a week of incessant anti-matthews posts, to the point of obsession. He attacks fairly often for a semi-sprinter, and he's a much more talented rider than Gerrans.

 

[GuyIncognito]

Re: Re:

Matthews to win this.

Ala and Bala are dumb enough to wait for the final. They will regret it when their teams have towed Gerro 2.0 to the line.

Did Matthews sleep with your girlfriend or something? Your hate for him is excessive

It's justified. NEVER FORGET: https://www.ridemedia.com.au/interviews/michael-matthews-the-amstel-gold-race/

That was weird (maybe a mistake??) and I don't like matthews either but it's been a week of incessant anti-matthews posts, to the point of obsession. He attacks fairly often for a semi-sprinter, and he's a much more talented rider than Gerrans.

I believe the hate stems from his personality. He's hard to like.

 

[bigcog]

Re:

Liege has dissapointed since 2012. Hope it is a better race this year.

Looks like you're out of luck ...

 

[Leinster]

Can't wait for Dan Martin to get dropped on la redoute

? What's is wrong with Martin, in your opinion?

I don't dislike Martin but four days ago he got dropped on the penultimate ascent of the Mur. He just doesn't have the shape to win here right now but still UAE rides like they have the fahorite in their team again

Martin had just chased for a couple of km to get back after being stuck in a fall, so he had an excuse

Martin himself said he never got back on after the crash, no?

I thought he was protesting too much myself, but if they're riding at the front today he must have genuinely believed it, and that he does have the form.

Trek, MTS, EF-Drapac etc all on the front spread across the road now.

 

[Bot. Sky_Bot]

Sagan one more time?

 

[El Pistolero]

This will be another easy Valverde win it seems.

 

[Brullnux]

Re: Re:

Matthews to win this.

Ala and Bala are dumb enough to wait for the final. They will regret it when their teams have towed Gerro 2.0 to the line.

Did Matthews sleep with your girlfriend or something? Your hate for him is excessive

It's justified. NEVER FORGET: https://www.ridemedia.com.au/interviews/michael-matthews-the-amstel-gold-race/

That was weird (maybe a mistake??) and I don't like matthews either but it's been a week of incessant anti-matthews posts, to the point of obsession. He attacks fairly often for a semi-sprinter, and he's a much more talented rider than Gerrans.

I believe the hate stems from his personality. He's hard to like.

To a point though. And, like I said, I don't like Matthews either.

 

[Valv.Piti]

Re:

The course need to change. Tried to design a Liege route for the likes of Nibali, Roglic, Pinot and Dumoulin but it could be a reduced sprint as well. Hopefully the extra kilometers and the climbs being closer to each other would make it a bit harder. What do you guys think?

Couldn't you make it even more hilly in the first part? The opening section of hills are perfect and the finale starting with Redoute looks quite nice, no flat between the climbs really has potential to be great.

I only know two of the climbs tho.

 

[Roude Leiw]

Re:

This will be another easy Alaphilippe win it seems.

Fixed

 

[Gigs_98]

You really have to wonder what everyone except Movistar, Sunweb and maybe Quickstep is thinking. For example, what is Bahrein doing? I'm starting to fear Nibali is gonna do exactly nothing.

 

[Rollthedice]

Enough with the rollers, the race is just about to begin now.

 

[Orbit501]

There's Aru doing the Kit Kat advert again :lol:

 

[rainman]

The climbs are no longer enough. Wide roads, no pave, the bunch doesn't keep splitting as it does in RVV, or Amstel. Only horrendous weather and huge wind could make a race of this. Its not a monument at present.

 

[Red Rick]

You really have to wonder what everyone except Movistar, Sunweb and maybe Quickstep is thinking. For example, what is Bahrein doing? I'm starting to fear Nibali is gonna do exactly nothing.

Where should he be doing it?

Maquisard? Rosier? The false flat descend off the Maquisard is the death of any move.

 

[Eyeballs Out]

I can't see Matthews as a leading contender in a sprint anyway this year. He might be fully recovered from that early season crash now but what he can't recover is the racing he missed. Might not be such a problem in a 200 km race but will probably cost him in this one

 

[Gigs_98]

Re:

Enough with the rollers, the race is just about to begin now.

Right, only a bit more than 35 kilometers to go until that happens

 

[Leinster]

Re:

The course need to change. Tried to design a Liege route for the likes of Nibali, Roglic, Pinot and Dumoulin but it could be a reduced sprint as well. Hopefully the extra kilometers and the climbs being closer to each other would make it a bit harder. What do you guys think?

FW added a couple of climbs in the first 100km this year, and ended up with their best finale in living memory. Maybe the early going needs to be tougher to shed some of the dead wood.

There's a bit of urgency now, thankfully. You wouldn't see a peloton this big together this late in MSR, and that's supposed to be the easy monument.

 

[Bot. Sky_Bot]

Re:

This will be another easy Valverde win it seems.

Disgusting.

 

[GuyIncognito]

Re:

There's Aru doing the Kit Kat advert again :lol:

The ads are local to your eurosport. For example, I've never seen that Aru ad. And the Sagan ad has only played once all day.

 

[Gigs_98]

You really have to wonder what everyone except Movistar, Sunweb and maybe Quickstep is thinking. For example, what is Bahrein doing? I'm starting to fear Nibali is gonna do exactly nothing.

Where should he be doing it?

Maquisard? Rosier?

Ofc he shouldn't attack that early, but his team could make sure Movistar doesn't have a fully rested team at their disposal to chase everyone after RaF.

 

[EroicaStradeBianche]

You really have to wonder what everyone except Movistar, Sunweb and maybe Quickstep is thinking. For example, what is Bahrein doing? I'm starting to fear Nibali is gonna do exactly nothing.

They will try something, but if they go in the front, they'll work for Movistar (which seems to have found allies anyway), or anyone have the legs to break away. Everyone is feeling already the sprint in Ans. When the route is a joke this is what happens.

 

[Rollthedice]

Mas, the stopper.