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bambino said:He simply doesn't have the legs when the 2 big boys goes. Well he can always fight with Scarponi.
Arredondo said:Nope. Not on the level of Froome and Quintana.
For years now.
Valv.Piti said:It might seem harsh, but after the work done by Tinkoff today, I think its do or die today for Contador. Hoping he at least can hold on to Quintana.
Yeah but I would have preferred a do-or-die attack like Chaves Clever racing and limiting losses won't get him anywhere at this pointCance > TheRest said:Pretty clever racing by Alberto today. This could have gone a lot worse if he had tried an attack. Just look at Chaves' failed attack
Agree; he limited his losses well today. Still has an outside shot at the podium if Valverde cracks and Chaves/Konig crash or get a mechanical. Perhaps he is finally learning to adjust to not being one of the strongest riders.Cance > TheRest said:Pretty clever racing by Alberto today. This could have gone a lot worse if he had tried an attack. Just look at Chaves' failed attack
To be 5th in the Vuelta requires you to be one of the strongest riders. I agree he's not THE strongest rider (singular).DFA123 said:Agree; he limited his losses well today. Still has an outside shot at the podium if Valverde cracks and Chaves/Konig crash or get a mechanical. Perhaps he is finally learning to adjust to not being one of the strongest riders.Cance > TheRest said:Pretty clever racing by Alberto today. This could have gone a lot worse if he had tried an attack. Just look at Chaves' failed attack
Sure, he's probably among the top 5 or 6 climbers in the race.Cance > TheRest said:To be 5th in the Vuelta requires you to be one of the strongest riders. I agree he's not THE strongest rider (singular).DFA123 said:Agree; he limited his losses well today. Still has an outside shot at the podium if Valverde cracks and Chaves/Konig crash or get a mechanical. Perhaps he is finally learning to adjust to not being one of the strongest riders.Cance > TheRest said:Pretty clever racing by Alberto today. This could have gone a lot worse if he had tried an attack. Just look at Chaves' failed attack
DFA123 said:Agree; he limited his losses well today. Still has an outside shot at the podium if Valverde cracks and Chaves/Konig crash or get a mechanical. Perhaps he is finally learning to adjust to not being one of the strongest riders.Cance > TheRest said:Pretty clever racing by Alberto today. This could have gone a lot worse if he had tried an attack. Just look at Chaves' failed attack
LaFlorecita said:Yeah but I would have preferred a do-or-die attack like Chaves Clever racing and limiting losses won't get him anywhere at this pointCance > TheRest said:Pretty clever racing by Alberto today. This could have gone a lot worse if he had tried an attack. Just look at Chaves' failed attack
Jspear said:LaFlorecita said:Yeah but I would have preferred a do-or-die attack like Chaves Clever racing and limiting losses won't get him anywhere at this pointCance > TheRest said:Pretty clever racing by Alberto today. This could have gone a lot worse if he had tried an attack. Just look at Chaves' failed attack
I'm fully expecting Quintana and Froome to be 1-2, BUT....Never say never! I'm dreaming about a Fuente De situation....
Good post, makes sense. Making the easier stages hard, is probably Contador's best chance of sneaking into 3rd. I think Konig could be the spanner in the works there though. He's looking very strong right now and will TT amongst the very best.Jelantik said:DFA123 said:Agree; he limited his losses well today. Still has an outside shot at the podium if Valverde cracks and Chaves/Konig crash or get a mechanical. Perhaps he is finally learning to adjust to not being one of the strongest riders.Cance > TheRest said:Pretty clever racing by Alberto today. This could have gone a lot worse if he had tried an attack. Just look at Chaves' failed attack
Well if Contador wants to podium, he needs to dislodge Chavez then Valverde. He has slim or none chance to topple Quitana and Froome. So, I think Tinkoff rode hard to make it difficult for everyone. Chavez faded on 3rd week Giro. Astana played part of it by riding hard for NIbali even though he was 4 minutes behind. Tinkoff' is targeting Valverde and Chavez first.
No, they're not. They don't ride for podium.Jelantik said:Tinkoff' is targeting Valverde and Chavez first. Those two somewhere will fade...
Did you know 1st place is also a place on the podium?DFA123 said:Contador still needs to raise his game considerably to get the podium place that has eluded him throughout his career.
It will be interesting to see if he has the mental strength and humility to fight it out for 3rd place for two weeks, or if he will just take the easy option of a showy, but ultimately hopeless long range attack, like usual when he's out of contention.LaFlorecita said:Did you know 1st place is also a place on the podium?DFA123 said:Contador still needs to raise his game considerably to get the podium place that has eluded him throughout his career.
DFA123 said:It will be interesting to see if he has the mental strength and humility to fight it out for 3rd place for two weeks, or if he will just take the easy option of a showy, but ultimately hopeless long range attack, like usual when he's out of contention.LaFlorecita said:Did you know 1st place is also a place on the podium?DFA123 said:Contador still needs to raise his game considerably to get the podium place that has eluded him throughout his career.
LaFlorecita said:Yeah but I would have preferred a do-or-die attack like Chaves Clever racing and limiting losses won't get him anywhere at this pointCance > TheRest said:Pretty clever racing by Alberto today. This could have gone a lot worse if he had tried an attack. Just look at Chaves' failed attack
Of course, I just don't except them to fade that much.Angliru said:LaFlorecita said:Yeah but I would have preferred a do-or-die attack like Chaves Clever racing and limiting losses won't get him anywhere at this pointCance > TheRest said:Pretty clever racing by Alberto today. This could have gone a lot worse if he had tried an attack. Just look at Chaves' failed attack
If in fact Froome and Quintana do fatigue in the upcoming stages, then biding time and minimizing what losses he incurs until then could be the best strategy. He could have blown up like Chaves and lost time to Froome, Quintana and Chaves. He lost 6 seconds not minutes. He said that he would proceed with caution until an opportunity to strike presents itself. I dont' think there was one here otherwise he would not have lost the time that he did. It could've been much worse had he been impulsive.
Jspear said:LaFlorecita said:Yeah but I would have preferred a do-or-die attack like Chaves Clever racing and limiting losses won't get him anywhere at this pointCance > TheRest said:Pretty clever racing by Alberto today. This could have gone a lot worse if he had tried an attack. Just look at Chaves' failed attack
I'm fully expecting Quintana and Froome to be 1-2, BUT....Never say never! I'm dreaming about a Fuente De situation....