2019 UCI Road World Championships Men's Road Race : 284.5km

[Valv.Piti]

@Valv.Piti you completely sure today sucked?

The last 4 laps was the best worlds in a long, loooooong time.

Great day. I noted earlier in the thread that this was a race for Pedersen, everything was perfect. A bit hilly, not too much, long, hard and shitty weather. All that doesnt matter if he doesnt have the legs, his legs are basically a lotto coupon, but today he had it. Same thing happened in Flanders. One of the best strong men in the world on his best days with a dangerous sprint as evidenced today.

So yeah, great day.

 

[Mayomaniac]

Kung strong like ox, smart like tractor

A beast when the weather is horrible and probably smarter than the tractor

 

[LaFlorecita]

7	KRISTOFF Alexander	Norway	175	100	1:10
8	VAN AVERMAET Greg	Belgium	150	90	,,
9	IZAGIRRE Gorka	Spain	125	80	,,
10	COSTA Rui	Portugal	100	70	,,
11	COLBRELLI Sonny	Italy	85	65	,,
12	FUGLSANG Jakob	Denmark	70	60	,,
13	ŠTYBAR Zdeněk	Czech Republic	60	55	,,
14	BETANCUR Carlos	Colombia	50	50	,,
15	DEGENKOLB John	Germany	40	46	,,

Very diverse group of rider types in the final "peloton".

Classics hardmen, climbers and Bananito

 

[SafeBet]

People searching for explanation to Trentin poor sprint in the end should take a long look at his track record in sprints after a Classic/Monument. Everything you're looking for is there.

Italy rode an immaculate race. But they had numbers in the group and should've tried a couple attacks. No point in Moscon burying himself really.

 

[Red Rick]

I guess, but it is a hindsight thing. He clearly felt he could do the sprint but collapsed after 30m.

It happens. Maybe should've gone on a smaller gear but Pedersen was just much stronger in the end.

Hated how the Dutch commies said he was an idiot for sprinting from 300m.

 

[Simurgh]

Van der Poel arrived at + 10'52''

 

[Koronin]

Congrats to the winner, but not a worlds worth watching. (That is basically the entire week of racing.)

 

[42x16ss]

Carlos Betancur still has it in him. He needs to focus his inner energy better. But we have been saying this for the last 5 years.

If he had the motivation of someone like Valverde, Van Vleuten or Van der Poel Betancur would be invincible

 

[Red Rick]

Classics hardmen, climbers and Bananito

Rui Costa too. Somehow never close in hilly classics, always good in WCRR no matter if route actuall suits him or not.

 

[Unchained]

Thanks YouTube!!!!!!

thanks for nothing Telnor and Sky!!! Who wants to watch a race that has been over for @2 hours!!!
ESPN shows snooker live but not the worlds!!!

 

[DonEsteban]

In hindsight I think Sagan could have been on the podium, if he had followed MDVP or attacked shortly after that.

Sagan was way far back in the peloton, cruising next to GVA.

He should have been more attentive and aggressive, instead was hoping it is still too early and Australia/Belgium/Norway/Germany will chase that break anyway.

His problem is that if he started chasing, they would just tail him and let himself tire out ...

He was still the best of the main favourites (MvP, GVA, Matthews, Alaphilippe, Gilbert, Kristoff), but needed Belgium/Australia not to mess up so badly.

 

[greenedge]

It's nice to have someone who wasn't a big favorite wear the jersey for a change.

I agree- really made the peleton's anticlimax less of a drag on the overall race ranking.
Pedersen has so much classic pedigree, it's amazing. Both him and Kung should be great over the next few years at the Classics.

For Trentin, I thought he rode well and would have it in the bag, but Pedersen is a deserving winner who packs a decent punch!

 

[Finn84]

It's nice to have someone who wasn't a big favorite wear the jersey for a change.

Valverde - surely not
Sagan - Not really surprising in any of them, beating Cav from a bunch in Doha was great though
Kwiatkowski - not real surprise
Costa - Good form but question marks over the team (only 3 Portuguese riders)
Gilbert - surely not
Cav - surely not
Hushovd - One of the best sprinters who had endurance on hills, not
Evans - While he races classics, he had never won a big one before WC, so he was kind of surprise
Ballan - I would rate this as a surprise, he was really 3rd or 4th card within Italian team

 

[Martinstranger]

Congrats to young rider Mads Pedersen - only 23 years of age and already an excellent rider.

He was doing almost everything right. Waiting for Theuns so the Dutch wouldn't chase and kept going when MVDP and Trentin jumped to the front. He will have to thank Stephan Kung for all the work in front - he even put pressuere on at the hill, so Trentin would'nt attack.

Very good racing when we finally got pictures

 

[Montelimar]

Very glad to see a young rider from Denmark, a promising nation for cycling, getting a very deserved victory. Brave ride Mads, well done.

 

[Valv.Piti]

So how come Sagan didn't follow Trentin and Mathieu? Legs or trying to ride ala Sagan?

 

[Climbing]

And once again is on poor old Vincenzo's shoulders to bring back Italy on top (next year).

 

[greenedge]

Where the f%&k is Haig? Get your ranga ar$e up there and pull!

No legs, but at least he rode for his leader. Hopefully he gets a leadership role next year at the Worlds and Olympics.

 

[Zinoviev Letter]

I'm not sure. He did a whole lot of work in that group, starting from when he escaped with Craddock, all the way until 1 km to go. Yes, maybe he should have sat on. But on the other hand, with his (lack of) explosiveness, he did secure a medal in this way. Looks like from the point he dropped Moscon he decided to sacrifice any chance of a victory for a guaranteed medal.

Who cares about a medal. This is cycling, it’s all about the win. Kung may not get many opportunities to win the WCRR and he failed to maximize his chance today. A 10% chance of winning is better than an inevitable third. Strongest guy in the race, but nowhere near the smartest.

 

[Mayomaniac]

So how come Sagan didn't follow Trentin and Mathieu? Legs or trying to ride ala Sagan?

No idea, to me it looked like Trentin was the only captain who had the legs to follow MVP.

 

[skidmark]

This was by far the worst Worlds for France in this decade.

Voeckler has serious work to do, and our nation a serious need of talents.

I wouldn't be so hard on your nation - it's more results that it needs for, not talents. Alaphilippe won so many things this year and would have likely been in better shape for the Worlds if he hadn't won basically everything else. Pinot on his day is good enough to win the Tour, he's just had a combo of terrible luck and fragility. Cosnefroy and Gaudu look like potential world beaters in the making. The talent is there, for sure.

 

[Dekker_Tifosi]

Damn what a worlds

Pedersen the surprising but deserved winner. So many things going through my mind the last 15km.

• Vd Poel looked like a beast and like he couldn't lose. But even he has to remember to eat enough. Never seen somebody park so badly in years! The word hunger knock is back
• Trentin looked like a beast and like he couldn't lose.. but even he can cramp up the moment he starts his sprint I suppose..
• Pedersen just had by far the most left and easily won the sprint. Probs to Küng getting third aftera 65km long attack.

-Sagan if you can close 20s in such a short time, where were you went VdP and Trentin attacked?

All in all, disappointed VdP didn't manage to win, but truly enjoyed the worlds as a whole. That was a classic race of attrition. Only the strongest can win that race. And Pedersen was the strongest. Period.

 

[Pirazziattacks]

Who cares about a medal. This is cycling, it’s all about the win. Kung may not get many opportunities to win the WCRR and he failed to maximize his chance today. A 10% chance of winning is better than an inevitable third.

He wasn't riding for 3rd, he went hard on any sort of hill and tried to ride the others off the wheel on the flat as well. He almost dropped Pedersen and I think Trentin was under pressure as well.

 

[Cance > TheRest]

Weather surely was a huge factor, 3 scandinavians in top 7

"Danskervejr" is not a myth it seems.

 

[GuntherL]

46 riders finished the race. Can you imagine what slaughter it would have been with those two extra hills and 20 additional kms?