He is in the same shape as in Burgos... How could he not improve is beyond me. Since the Dauphine prologue it was all just downhill...
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He should be, but is he really? This is what concerns me. Speaking in normal terms, riders like Froome and Quintana should start to lose form later and AC should get better....I don't think it's gonna work this way though. If AC must lose then I hope Chaves slaughters everyone.
Red Rick said:
He should be, but is he really? This is what concerns me. Speaking in normal terms, riders like Froome and Quintana should start to lose form later and AC should get better....I don't think it's gonna work this way though. If AC must lose then I hope Chaves slaughters everyone.
How many times hasn't Contador exploded like this? Incredible. He has this burning desire to stick with the leaders, but when he doesn't have it, he explodes and loses a bunch of time. Seen it time and time again. It doesn't have to be as extreme as Froome, but he really isn't good to measure his efforts at times.
Maybe we should wait for Lagos de Covadonga to make an assessment.
He may not be at his best, but he is the only contender without a GT on his legs.
He may not be at his best, but he is the only contender without a GT on his legs.
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He doesn't have that mentality, he was used to demolish every race he entered in the past. He has a lot of proudValv.Piti said:
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I know how I feel; this isn't going well at all
Losing time in the TTT was expected, they lost more than I'd hoped. But today it was Berto that came up short. He was right there, looking very uncomfortable, and then gone
LaFlorecita said:
I know how I feel; this isn't going well at all
Losing time in the TTT was expected, they lost more than I'd hoped. But today it was Berto that came up short. He was right there, looking very uncomfortable, and then gone
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Exactly, and thats the problem. He should really try to adapt and let go before he explodes. This isn't 2009 where Alberto couldn't feel his chain.
portugal11 said:
Exactly, and thats the problem. He should really try to adapt and let go before he explodes. This isn't 2009 where Alberto couldn't feel his chain.
I have no expectations of him in this race and ive no idea why people think Froome and Quintana are going to be tired. Neither have had any setbacks. As much as id like Contador to be up there, today does not surprise me, he wasn't good in Burgos. Man has clearly struggled with injury.
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To my eyes, he performed badly in Burgos despite winning it by a stroke of luck TBH
bajbar said:
To my eyes, he performed badly in Burgos despite winning it by a stroke of luck TBH
There is no need to freak out. Only in Aitana and the TT a rider can recover 2-3 minutes if he is fresh. It is a long race.
If the work is there, it will show as the race progresses. If his preparation is insufficent, we will see it in Lagos.
If the work is there, it will show as the race progresses. If his preparation is insufficent, we will see it in Lagos.
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That was my point. He was bad in Burgos. He is bad here... What will be the excuse I wonder. He really has none. He is the freshest of them all, he has done a prep race, his injury was almost 2 months ago. To think that this is the same rider from the last two stages of Pais Vasco just 4 months ago. Something must have gone really bad in those 4 months...
hfer07 said:
That was my point. He was bad in Burgos. He is bad here... What will be the excuse I wonder. He really has none. He is the freshest of them all, he has done a prep race, his injury was almost 2 months ago. To think that this is the same rider from the last two stages of Pais Vasco just 4 months ago. Something must have gone really bad in those 4 months...
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His posts are annoying because his eternal Contador optimism is often unrealistic and usually turns out to be wrong. Don't think I have never seen any of his assertions come true. Think he posted a couple of days ago something like: "Contador is going to destroy Froome, Quintana, etc. on Monday. He's the best. Deal with it". I think it's those sorts of deliberately cocky, silly and usually wrong posts that some people are tired of.
Brullnux said:
His posts are annoying because his eternal Contador optimism is often unrealistic and usually turns out to be wrong. Don't think I have never seen any of his assertions come true. Think he posted a couple of days ago something like: "Contador is going to destroy Froome, Quintana, etc. on Monday. He's the best. Deal with it". I think it's those sorts of deliberately cocky, silly and usually wrong posts that some people are tired of.
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I'm digging into my memory but I can't think of any stage that suits your description?Scarponi said:
Today wasn't good obviously, but maybe he needs more time to ride himself into form than a couple of his years ago, because of his ageing body. Until the first MTF I believe nothing can be concluded, but no doubt that Contador needs to rethink his goals, if he wants to ride next year.
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Of course, the time difference is not really an issue, but it shows he's not well prepared. He may still gain some form, but he might be 3 minutes behind at that point.KyoGrey said:
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Yeah, I expected a time loss today because of his age, I too feel he needs a few days to get spark in his legs. This is worse than I expected though.lenric said:
So I think I'm done with cycling. I wanted to do that anyway at the end of the year (when I thought Bertie would retire) and I was already pissed off that he wanted to prolong his career.
Good luck everyone, may God be with you and don't waste your time discussing on cyclingnews
Good luck everyone, may God be with you and don't waste your time discussing on cyclingnews
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When was the last time he improved his performance during a GT?
...
Too much pressure on him, not in a good shape, terrible team and not the best parcours to make up for lost time...
Definetly, it´s not looking good.
He´s got too many things on his mind the last months. He´s not 100% focus on the bike. And when you get this old, you have to work harder every year.
KyoGrey said:
When was the last time he improved his performance during a GT?
...
Too much pressure on him, not in a good shape, terrible team and not the best parcours to make up for lost time...
Definetly, it´s not looking good.
He´s got too many things on his mind the last months. He´s not 100% focus on the bike. And when you get this old, you have to work harder every year.
Contador's performance in the Vuelta may make him re-consider retirement - Still no notice of his signing with Trek.
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Pretty sure Guercilena will feel stupid now though
He has signed the contract - it just hasn't been made public yetyaco said:
Pretty sure Guercilena will feel stupid now though
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