DFA123 said:
Happy dude said:
People saying cav has lost it. He hasn't lost anything, Greipel has just been much smarter on 2 stages so far. Letting cav lead him out. And since they've both been headwind finishes. That was the correct thing to do.
But I do hope Cavendish doesn't apportion blame to his team again today. Yes they went too early again but he should've known that everyone would die in the headwind and should've kicked at 150, not 300
He's clearly lost the acceleration and top speed that he had even 2 or 3 years ago. He used to win stages despite dodgy positioning or poor timing - now he only wins if he gets everything spot on tactically.
Yes I think he's lost acceleration as you would expect with age. I think his speed is still there. But to say he has completely lost it is defeatist(or optimistic in some peoples cases)
But I think he just needs to use his head more. It is not 2009 anymore and he can't just destroy everyone regardless of everything. He needs to start being smart about it.
For example, a good bet is to sit on kristoffs wheel cuz he always goes early. Perfect lead out.
Another thing he has lost is his aggression, he does not want to get injured anymore. And isn't as aggressive for positioning. I think he is actually going through the stage greipel was going through for the last couple of seasons. Trying to reinvent himself. Greipel is much much smarter than he has been in previous additions and that gives him the optimal sprint distance for him pretty consistently. Cavendish now has to reinvent himself.
Regarding Greipel, He looks much better now than in previous years, maybe that is because the competition is worse, but I think he has improved massively, jumping at the right time every time, doing just enough to fend Sagan off. Which is exactly right. Maybe he can be the new Cipo. With some old age sprinting.
Now Sagan, he has been the fastest in the last 20m both stages, but he really actually needs to sprint against Andre before we can say he's faster