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Teams & Riders Bahrain

Page 22 - Get up to date with the latest news, scores & standings from the Cycling News Community.
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Was that even in the top 3 of Colbrelli's craziest performances this season? Looks like this year he's sipping on the same kind of Capri Sun as Wout.

Probably, but when you put it like that it's quite fun to look at his PCS and reminisce about the Dauphine, Benelux, Italian champs, and his entire TdF. And we still have Worlds to come! It's been a fun year with Sonny. He'll probably win Lombardia too.
 
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Riders know with a lot of teams, only now with the police raid that did nothing it's somehow cool to complain about them.

Like nobody was bitching about Jumbo last year.

actually riders and team directors were complaining (anonymously) to the press BEFORE the raid.

I think the ease with which Padun dropped everyone out of nowhere for two straight mountain stage wins at the Dauphine already had a lot traction with other teams and riders. They knew immediately that something was up.

I have no idea what parallel you are trying to draw with Jumbo. The two have absolutely ZERO in similarity. Bahrain was a unit with average to middle of the road pros who had barely won anything. Since May, for some unknown reason, all of these same riders are outperforming anything they did in the past, often by a lot. I believe they have the most victories on the pro Tour since the start of May. All the other teams and riders know something is up. Let’s hope crackdown comes soon. Otherwise, like epo, whatever is going on will spread.
 
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wout has pedigree.

three world cross championships.

and as soon as he started on the road, he showed he could win sprints, TTs and climb fairly well. You ever watch Freddy Maertens in 1976-77?

colbrelli is no WVA.
When was Van Aert's first impressive climbing performance? I would say that he didn't show at any time before the lockdowns that he could climb fairly well. That is, before the lockdowns he has shown less in the mountains than Froome before the 2011 Vuelta, then out of nowhere he was able to finish first among the favourites after the breakaway in the last big mountain stage of the Tour. That's a way bigger and more sudden transformation than that of Colbrelli.
 
When was Van Aert's first impressive climbing performance? I would say that he didn't show at any time before the lockdowns that he could climb fairly well. That is, before the lockdowns he has shown less in the mountains than Froome before the 2011 Vuelta, then out of nowhere he was able to finish first among the favourites after the breakaway in the last big mountain stage of the Tour. That's a way bigger and more sudden transformation than that of Colbrelli.

Where's the "new Betsy Andreu"? There must be someone somewhere that's not afraid to talk. In the meantime I try to just see things like her, very naively. The whole peleton is full of all these weird anomalies. I wouldn't understand how anyone could ever think only one of WVA and Colbrelli are suspicious. Both are :D
 
Colbrelli performance is not thermonuclear obvious. It's just his best year coinciding with all the other riders in Bahrain that draws attention to what they're doing.

Colbrelli was always a good climber. More of a puncher who could sprint. Let's not forget he won Brabanste pijl 4 years ago. Also winning stuff like GP lugano at Bardiani. I haven't seen him win a proper bunch sprint in the world tour really. Even that Paris Nice stage was uphill in the rain.

WVA by contrast is just ridiculous.

Outsprints Ewan and Bennett in TDF in a bunchsprint. Out time trials Asgreen, Kung and Ganna.

Drops Elissonde and Mollema on a HC climb. Beats froome's 2013 time on Prati Di tivo. And now can beat Alaphilippe and Woods on a fleche wallone finish.

Oh and he can also beat the world best cyclo-cross.

I don't think Colbrelli is close to clean, but he is I think doing relatively normal things. WVA I can barely watch without being embarrassed for being a cycling fan.
 
This is a Bahrain thread. Van Aert certainly is as suspicious as heck, and at least one part of his profile is crazy, but there is a thread all about just him.

Bahrain is loony. I mean, Haig and Landa themselves are not really an issue, it's all the other crazy. I mean, politics aside, the team has done enough to end up getting a police raid this year. That is obvious

And Colbrelli ... He certainly seems to have kicked it up a number of notches this year.
 
When was Van Aert's first impressive climbing performance? I would say that he didn't show at any time before the lockdowns that he could climb fairly well. That is, before the lockdowns he has shown less in the mountains than Froome before the 2011 Vuelta, then out of nowhere he was able to finish first among the favourites after the breakaway in the last big mountain stage of the Tour. That's a way bigger and more sudden transformation than that of Colbrelli.

Oh come on, neither of them are very comparable to Froome. He wasn't even demonstrating a solid road race results before the 2011 Vuelta.
 
Is impossible to compare. The rise of Wout to winning a HC mountain stage in a GT is certainly a much faster progression than Froomes. Wout's came in 2021 Tour de France beating Ellisonde & Pogacar iirc, but that's only his 2nd ever HC stage he's ever faced in his career, the first HC stage he finished half an hour down, but probably domestique anyway like much of Froomes early career. Froomes first came years after his first HC stage. Either way, I can't see Wout turning into a GC rider until he puts a hold on CX & the classics and actually focuses on the mental aspect of GC racing, which is totally different than just winning a mountain stage.
 
Is impossible to compare. The rise of Wout to winning a HC mountain stage in a GT is certainly a much faster progression than Froomes. Wout's came in 2021 Tour de France beating Ellisonde & Pogacar iirc, but that's only his 2nd ever HC stage he's ever faced in his career, the first HC stage he finished half an hour down, but probably domestique anyway like much of Froomes early career. Froomes first came years after his first HC stage. Either way, I can't see Wout turning into a GC rider until he puts a hold on CX & the classics and actually focuses on the mental aspect of GC racing, which is totally different than just winning a mountain stage.
Wout finished 19th on Col de la Loze
 
Oh come on, neither of them are very comparable to Froome. He wasn't even demonstrating a solid road race results before the 2011 Vuelta.
If you disagree with the statement, show that it is wrong. I don't think you can find a climbing performance by Van Aert before the lockdowns that was more impressive than what Froome did in the 2011 Tour de Romandie (Leysin) and the 2011 Tour de Suisse (Crans-Montana).

And this relates to Bahrain, when the discussion is about how ridiculously suspicious and over the top they are. For that you need to compare them with their competitors. Bahrain is stepping up to the same league as Jumbo, Quick-Step, and Ineos -- They are not stepping up to a level above all others.
 
Is impossible to compare. The rise of Wout to winning a HC mountain stage in a GT is certainly a much faster progression than Froomes. Wout's came in 2021 Tour de France beating Ellisonde & Pogacar iirc, but that's only his 2nd ever HC stage he's ever faced in his career, the first HC stage he finished half an hour down, but probably domestique anyway like much of Froomes early career. Froomes first came years after his first HC stage. Either way, I can't see Wout turning into a GC rider until he puts a hold on CX & the classics and actually focuses on the mental aspect of GC racing, which is totally different than just winning a mountain stage.

me neither, why focus on winning one whole race when you can win every individual stage = more wins :laughing:
 
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If you disagree with the statement, show that it is wrong. I don't think you can find a climbing performance by Van Aert before the lockdowns that was more impressive than what Froome did in the 2011 Tour de Romandie (Leysin) and the 2011 Tour de Suisse (Crans-Montana).

And this relates to Bahrain, when the discussion is about how ridiculously suspicious and over the top they are. For that you need to compare them with their competitors. Bahrain is stepping up to the same league as Jumbo, Quick-Step, and Ineos -- They are not stepping up to a level above all others.
Wasn't 2019 something van Aert's first full year in road racing and with a first Tour cut short due to a somewhat nasty crash? I think you are cherry picking specific race types and timelines to suit your purpose and I do not think they are comparable. Froome showed generally no major indications of having a major engine and his climbing, of any sort, was somewhat shyte and inconsistent before the Vuelta, then it went to world beating, coming in second to a a doper. So I think it is a misleading comparison Netserk, and in that way, not a reasonable comparison.

As for the second paragraph, I would generally agree. I don't think Bahrain is more transformational than other teams that appear to have gone full R. It is just their turn this year and obvious is obvious.
 
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