2021 Giro d'Italia, Stage 19: Abbiategrasso - Alpe di Mera 166 km

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What is gonna happen?

  • Bernal bonk

    Votes: 5 6.8%

  • Yates yeet

    Votes: 7 9.5%

  • Almeida almighty

    Votes: 19 25.7%

  • Caruso cruisin'

    Votes: 9 12.2%

  • breakaway take away

    Votes: 14 18.9%

  • Vincenzo victory

    Votes: 10 13.5%

  • I hate rhymes and alliterations

    Votes: 10 13.5%
  • Total voters
    74
  • Poll closed .
Escarabajo

Escarabajo

Apr 16, 2009
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Lequack said:
Almeida should win this stage.

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Well. where is Almeida?
 
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johnymax

johnymax

May 8, 2014
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If DQS and Almeida are going for the stage win, how are they gonna do it? Do they wait for the last climb and try to set a hard pace for Almeida or will they try to anticipate? If there is a team willing to push a hard tempo up the final climb and the relative strength of the riders is similar to the Sega di Ala climb, I think Yates can take close to a minute on Bernal again. The climb suits him with the double digit gradients and also there are no flattish couple of km like in the previous stage, where the help of Martinez, Bilbao and Caruso were crucial for Bernal. But I expect Egan to be better this time and maybe only lose up to 20-30s which should be considered a success for him at this point.

Caruso? I have no idea how he'll go. He is maybe the only one who hasn't had a bad day in this Giro so far. He looks to be strong enough to comfortably hold onto the podium right now. He'll probably try to go with Yates when he attacks, but I don't think he'll be able to follow. In all the responses he's given to reporters, he's been hinting at riding defensively trying to save the podium more than anything else. I don't like it, but fully understand why he'd do this.
 
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Pantani_lives

Pantani_lives

May 3, 2010
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It's a crucial stage for Bernal. If he doesn't lose time to Yates and Caruso he's got the Giro in the bag. With that steep MTF he can't hide, so we will find out if he only had a weak moment or if his back problems are back.

Yates' team might set the pace, hoping for the stage win and bonus seconds, so this one might be between the GC riders.
 
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M

movingtarget

Aug 5, 2009
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Shame about more stage changes but it seems standard for the Giro these days. Not convinced that Bernal was in big trouble on the previous mountain stage and I think he handled it well. If it was a full on bonk he would have lost more than two minutes. Maybe partially rest day syndrome but I get the feeling that Yates prepared for a strong third week after what happened to him in the previous Giro in the final week where he looked like the winner. As good as Caruso has been I don't see him as a threat but it will be a solid podium result for him if he can keep it up and it seems he will. Bardet is up and down on a daily basis and is due a good ride but the Bardet of 2016/17 has disappeared. Carthy is just too inconsistent but may do well on this stage. If there is going to be a joker in the pack it might be Almeida. I think Vlasov will show more of the same, the third week is testing him.
 
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Cookster15

Cookster15

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May 14, 2011
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Rollthedice said:
"I'll have to know how to manage the last days of the race" - Bernal underlined - 'Now I have a 3'30" lead over Yates, not bad for me. It would be a risk if he sprints at 3-5 km and I go after him, if then happens what happened yesterday it would be a mistake on my part. I have to race with my head and I must not make mistakes also for my teammates who are working for me and are sacrificing so much. If I win the Giro it will also be thanks to them."

"It's hard to know if I'm declining or if this is my best form. I want to arrive in Milan with this beautiful jersey on my shoulders. Yesterday was a bit of a bad day, but we all know that in cycling we all have days like that. Now I want to recover and do well to arrive with enough strength in my legs to face the final time trial".
Click to expand...

Thanks, I wasn't aware. But I still think if Bernal feels like he did prior to stage 17 then he doesn't need to ride defensively. He can ride to how he feels and that would be enough. Don't have long to wait to find out.
Salvarani said:
If Bernal has to dig very deep again it could become a nightmare for him these last three days.

I dont know if the others should attack, attack and attack. Just use their teams to make this race super-hard in the next two days and it could be enough if he completely fades.
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Why would that be? Why would he fade? No explanation has been given that makes sense.
Yeh he did a lot earlier in the Giro but really not much more than we see from others who are older than him.

Young - check
Not overcooked coming into the Giro - check
Has the strongest team - check
Has won a Grand Tour - check

No doubt I will be wrong ;)but in the meantime I can only argue with with logic and reason.

Even what he was quoted as saying I would not read much into. Bernal strikes me as a modest kid. No brash talk. He is understating himself. Deflecting pressure. Pretty normal for riders in the mix to win a grand tour.

Now again I might be wrong but I think my reasoning that he won’t fade is as good as any put forth that he will. Not long to wait to find out!:)
 
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S

Salvarani

Oct 15, 2017
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Cookster15 said:
Thanks, I wasn't aware. But I still think if Bernal feels like he did prior to stage 17 then he doesn't need to ride defensively. He can ride to how he feels and that would be enough. Don't have long to wait to find out.

Why would that be? Why would he fade? No explanation has been given that makes sense.
Yeh he did a lot earlier in the Giro but really not much more than we see from others who are older than him.

Young - check
Not overcooked coming into the Giro - check
Has the strongest team - check
Has won a Grand Tour - check

No doubt I will be wrong ;)but in the meantime I can only argue with with logic and reason.

Even what he was quoted as saying I would not read much into. Bernal strikes me as a modest kid. No brash talk. He is understating himself. Deflecting pressure. Pretty normal for riders in the mix to win a grand tour.

Now again I might be wrong but I think my reasoning that he won’t fade is as good as any put forth that he will. Not long to wait to find out!:)
Click to expand...

Now of those things matter if the legs not responding anymore, and I think my key word was "if" in my sentence. I never said he will fade.

Making the the race hard at least increases the probability that it could happen, that was my point on what the others should try and do. Not attack and attack to burn themselves up. That usually never works.

Bernal has showed he is not unbeatable, but he could very well have recovered and will ride defensively not to blow up again. Thats why the others should try and make the race hard, not wait until the last climb. Use their teams before the last climb. High pace early on and throughout the next two stages. He could break if that happens. He has showed some weakness. But thats also gambling a lot, because the others might break in process too.

We will see what happens.
 
Cookster15

Cookster15

Moderator
May 14, 2011
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IndianCyclist said:
Yates to attack 3 k from finish. Almeida to follow and win. Bernal to pace/get paced by Martinez and lose 30 s. Caruso to follow Bernal. Rest of the top ten to drop at various points.
BikeEx and QS to keep break under check
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So Yates busts his guts for only a 30 second gain. Only another 2:20 or so to go in stage 20 and the TT where logic suggests Bernal will put time on Yates.
 
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Cookster15

Cookster15

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May 14, 2011
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Salvarani said:
Now of those things matter if the legs not responding anymore, and I think my key word was "if" in my sentence. I never said he will fade.

Making the the race hard at least increases the probability that it could happen, that was my point on what the others should try and do. Not attack and attack to burn themselves up. That usually never works.

Bernal has showed he is not unbeatable, but he could very well have recovered and will ride defensively not to blow up again. Thats why the others should try and make the race hard, not wait until the last climb. Use their teams before the last climb. High pace early on and throughout the next two stages. He could break if that happens. He has showed some weakness. But thats also gambling a lot, because the others might break in process too.

We will see what happens.
Click to expand...
You are still not making sense. Why would his legs not respond any more? This is the question I am seeking the answer to?

  1. He is young
  2. He isn't overcooked
  3. He has the strongest team - that means stronger than Yates or Caruso
  4. He won't be overawed since he has won the TdF.
Ineos can make the race hard too. Of course Bernal isn't unbeatable. But I think he is less beatable than Yates or Caruso.

As for break, well Ineos have the strongest lineup so I doubt they will just look and not put anyone else in that break or on Yates's wheel. If Yates wants to do a long range attack that is his only chance a la Schleck 2011 TdF. But Yates is no Froome.
 
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M

movingtarget

Aug 5, 2009
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RedheadDane said:
In this case it would have been really disrespectful to have a bike race on that climb, while the investigation is still on-going. While there might be people in the area, mourning their loved ones.
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I didn't say it wouldn't be but it's still disappointing for cycling fans and most of the stage changes in the Giro tend to come at critical times in the race unfortunately. There is no law against being disappointed.
 
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limak_

limak_

Nov 17, 2020
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johnymax said:
I think Yates can take close to a minute on Bernal again. The climb suits him with the double digit gradients and also there are no flattish couple of km like in the previous stage, where the help of Martinez, Bilbao and Caruso were crucial for Bernal. But I expect Egan to be better this time and maybe only lose up to 20-30s which should be considered a success for him at this point.
Click to expand...
Bernal knows today's final climb of Alpe di Mera very well. Not only he did a recon few months ago, but he also lived in that region for a couple of years so I suppose he rode up it many times. I couldn't find any information if Yates did any recon of it beforehand, like he did with Sega di Ala, which obviously helped him on that day. Meanwhile, Bernal rode Sega di Ala for the first time.

So today Yates won't have the same advantage over Bernal from knowing the climb, that had 2 days ago. On such demanding climbs it's a crucial knowledge that helps with the right pacing, choosing the right moment to attack or to limit the losses. I think it'll be super hard for Yates to gain any significant time today.
 
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