2nd Adriatica Ionica Race /// july 24th - 28th 2019

[Logic-is-your-friend]

UPDATED WEBSITE: https://airace.it/
OLD WEBSITE (2018): https://www.adriaticaionicarace.com/
FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/adriaticaionicarace/
TWITTER: https://twitter.com/adriaticaionic1
OFFICIAL YOUTUBE CHANNEL: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMX14pNg-u90YqEVacFXGSw
PMG YOUTUBE CHANNEL: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCuNpZUFKAaQIlyLt5-bp_g

Last year a new stagerace emerged in the form of the Adriatica Ionica Race. Meant to offer stages for a wide selection of riders. Sprinters, climbers, puncheurs... Ivan Sosa won the first edition ahead of Ciccone and Arslanov. All three of these riders will be absent this year. Which doesn't mean there won't be interesting riders to follow:

Philippe Gilbert, Joe Dombrowski, Remco Evenepoel, Fausto Masnada, Jan Polanc, Ben Hermans, Mattia Cattaneo, Kevin Rivera, Winner Anacona, Sep Vanmarcke, Louis Meintjes, James Knox, Eduardo Sepulveda, Niklas Eg, Alvaro Hodeg... just to name a few. Since the provisional startlist, the name of Hugh Carthy has been removed from the final line-up.

There will be gravel sections, brutal climbs and ... a useless ceremonial stage.

!!! To know more about the race, the origins and what it is supposedly evolving into (a 10 day stagerace crossing Italy, Greece, Croatia, Austria, Slovenia...) in the future, i suggest reading this excellent article on Feltet through google translate, which also covers an in-depth preview of the route and the favorites. !!!

Unfortunately, the first stage is a gimmick that doesn't count towards GC. A local lap in Mestre of nearly 3 km, which the riders need to complete 30 times. In the evening.

So the race only starts for real on Thursday. But the main GC battle will be decided on Friday. Basically, there could be some GC movement on the gravel roads and puncheur finishes in the other stages, but Friday is when the climbers can make their mark.

Top GC competitors according to PCS:

01 Polanc Jan / UAE-Team Emirates - 495 pts - rank: 27
02 Prades Eduard / Movistar Team - 434 pts - rank: 36
03 Masnada Fausto / Androni Giocattoli - Sidermec - 422 pts - rank: 37
04 Hermans Ben / Israel Cycling Academy - 321 pts - rank: 61
05 Dombrowski Joe / EF Education First - 315 pts - rank: 65
06 Evenepoel Remco / Deceuninck - Quick Step - 296 pts - rank: 67
07 Anacona Winner / Movistar Team - 226 pts - rank: 89
08 Knox James / Deceuninck - Quick Step - 189 pts - rank: 117
09 Muñoz Daniel / Androni Giocattoli - Sidermec - 188 pts - rank: 120
10 Lammertink Maurits / Roompot - Charles - 144 pts - rank: 154
11 Sepúlveda Eduardo / Movistar Team - 144 pts - rank: 153
12 Cattaneo Mattia / Androni Giocattoli - Sidermec - 129 pts - rank: 173
13 Badilatti Matteo / Israel Cycling Academy - 125 pts - rank: 180
14 Gibbons Ryan / Team Dimension Data - 123 pts - rank: 187
15 Wyss Danilo / Team Dimension Data - 123 pts - rank: 183
16 Belletti Manuel / Androni Giocattoli - Sidermec - 120 pts - rank: 190
17 Molano Juan Sebastián / UAE-Team Emirates - 117 pts - rank: 200
18 Sütterlin Jasha / Movistar Team - 117 pts - rank: 201
19 Rivera Kevin / Androni Giocattoli - Sidermec - 114 pts - rank: 209
20 Zaccanti Filippo / Nippo Vini Fantini Faizanè - 112 pts - rank: 214

 

[fauniera]

Androni clearly have the best team for the mountains: Dani Munoz, Rivera, Masnada, Cattaneo. If that lineup is correct, that is.

The flat sterrato sectors on the Grado stage could be a problem, though. Rouleurs will have a lot of fun there.

 

[F_Cance]

Not the best startlist climbing wise

 

[Laplaz]

Androni clearly have the best team for the mountains: Dani Munoz, Rivera, Masnada, Cattaneo. If that lineup is correct, that is.

The flat sterrato sectors on the Grado stage could be a problem, though. Rouleurs will have a lot of fun there.

Inespecially Ballerini

 

[repre]

Mark Padun will win this bike race

 

[Logic-is-your-friend]

Re:

Mark Padun will win this bike race

Is this a running gag? Everytime he enters a race, somebody posts this. I think he's a decent prospect, but he hasn't exactly lit it up this year.

 

[tobydawq]

Re: Re:

Mark Padun will win this bike race

Is this a running gag? Everytime he enters a race, somebody posts this. I think he's a decent prospect, but he hasn't exactly lit it up this year.

Of course he hasn't, he was injured the whole year until June...

 

[Logic-is-your-friend]

Re: Re:

Mark Padun will win this bike race

Is this a running gag? Everytime he enters a race, somebody posts this. I think he's a decent prospect, but he hasn't exactly lit it up this year.

Of course he hasn't, he was injured the whole year until June...

Injured the whole year? Thought he got injured for a month or so in Pais Vasco. But let me rephrase: since turning pro. Still valid enough to question if people are kidding or being serious with their prediction.

 

[tobydawq]

Re: Re:

Mark Padun will win this bike race

Is this a running gag? Everytime he enters a race, somebody posts this. I think he's a decent prospect, but he hasn't exactly lit it up this year.

Of course he hasn't, he was injured the whole year until June...

Injured the whole year? Thought he got injured for a month or so in Pais Vasco. But let me rephrase: since turning pro. Still valid enough to question if people are kidding or being serious with their prediction.

No, he was injured the entire spring. Then he for some reason started the País Vasco race but you can check the result list of the first stage and see that that was probably premature. Then he finally returned in the Dauphiné.

He is also one of my favourites to win this race, just below Remco.

 

[repre]

Re: Re:

Mark Padun will win this bike race

Is this a running gag? Everytime he enters a race, somebody posts this. I think he's a decent prospect, but he hasn't exactly lit it up this year.

Of course he hasn't, he was injured the whole year until June...

Injured the whole year? Thought he got injured for a month or so in Pais Vasco. But let me rephrase: since turning pro. Still valid enough to question if people are kidding or being serious with their prediction.

He was ill at first and then had knee injury. He will lit this race up, he's been training in this area for the last month and will be leader of his team, that is centered around Bauhaus.

 

[Logic-is-your-friend]

Fair enough. I was under the impression the problems started during Pais Vasco. Still it begs the question if he'll be in form without much rhythm.

I'm very curious about Evenepoel, but after Romandie, not really ready to call him the top favorite either.

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Is this the toughest uncategorized climb in cycling history?

 

[Midnightfright]

Re:

Is this the toughest uncategorized climb in cycling history?

Uncategorized! My word I feel anxious just looking at the profile

 

[hayneplane]

Re: Re:

Is this the toughest uncategorized climb in cycling history?

Uncategorized! My word I feel anxious just looking at the profile

That is bizarre especially when in the same race they have a false flat drag of 12km at 2% as a category 3 climb. Makes no sense at all

 

[Wvv]

Re:

Is this the toughest uncategorized climb in cycling history?

Haha, makes no sense. Legs spontaneously hurt.

 

[Logic-is-your-friend]

I already mentioned it in the Evenepoel topic a few weeks ago that it made no sense that those climbs weren't rated. The average slope differs a bit from their own profile compared to "climb by bike", but still more than hard enough:

Strange that Passo del Pura and Passo Rest aren't rated.

https://www.climbbybike.com/nl/beklimming.asp?Col=Passo-del-Pura&qryMountainID=2920
https://www.climbbybike.com/nl/beklimming.asp?Col=Forcella-del-Monte-Rest&qryMountainID=2174#profile

According to their profile, Passo del Pura should be 7% for 12.4k and according to climbbybike it's 7.4%
Forcella del Monte Rest is 4.9% according to their profile, for 14.4k. According to climbbybike it's 4.1%

 

[Red Rick]

Re:

Is this the toughest uncategorized climb in cycling history?

The Tour would find a way to make that a HC

 

[repre]

Re: Re:

Is this the toughest uncategorized climb in cycling history?

The Tour would find a way to make that a HC

Thats tougher than most climbs in the Alps this year...

 

[wheresmybrakes]

I'm assuming the last 45 miles of the last stage the riders are gonna be drunk. Hope the GC is sorted before then.

 

[Mayomaniac]

I'll try to be near the finish line on the MTF, should be a good stage.
The heat shouldn't be as bad as today, but after Auronzo the road is exposed to the sunshine for a long amount of time, so the heat could be a factor.

 

[del1962]

Be interesting to see how Cav does on first stage

 

[Logic-is-your-friend]

According to the preview on Feltet, the race also wants to promote local culture & tourism, iirc. But it seems like TV coverage is somewhat meager. Especially frustrating during the "Queen Stage", when only the final climb will be televized, according to the official profile at least.

I also have no idea if the race will be broadcast live on tv, and if so, where. I see Eurosport 2 is showing recaps of 30 minutes late at night (around/before midnight). I see PMG has the stages set to go live on their youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCuNpZUFKAaQIlyLt5-bp_g so there's that at least.

I'll add that to the OP.

 

[RedheadDane]

Is there any TV coverage? Beyond shitty "Facebook live"?

 

[search]

as far as I can see (given the broadcasting times), there are only highlights in the evening on PMG as well. There was no live coverage last year either.

https://www.facebook.com/events/842036056179775/

 

[Logic-is-your-friend]

Re:

as far as I can see (given the broadcasting times), there are only highlights in the evening on PMG as well. There was no live coverage last year either.

https://www.facebook.com/events/842036056179775/

Is there any TV coverage? Beyond ****** "Facebook live"?

I literally posted it in the post above.

Recaps on Eurosport 2 late in the evening. Live feed on PMG youtube from what i can tell. The race today starts at 20:30 CET, and PMG goes live at 22:00. So i assume this is indeed a live feed. There would be no use in going live to post a video on youtube. They could just upload it as well and not bother going live. EDIT: see my post below. Likely the PMG "live" feed will not be live after all.