Ben Healy is not another Benny Hill but excels in hilly terrain

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Gigs_98

Gigs_98

Feb 18, 2015
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So do we actually think he can get a top 10? To me it seems like today was a day for pure climbers and he was extraordinarily strong. So based on that alone one would say he can top 5. But the fact that he's never really done much in gc's makes me very much doubt that. Top 10 still seems very possible tbh.
 
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Pantani_lives

Pantani_lives

May 3, 2010
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Fantastic achievement. He has a stage and yellow. I'm surprised that he's only twenty-four, because he's been around for years.

Ben Healy looks like a comedian, but he takes his job more seriously than you'd think. His head is tilted, but his position is actually very aerodynamic.

It's always good to see a fighter rewarded. It was a good performance by the team to have four men in the break. Healy might make the GC top 10, or just lose a lot of time in one stage and attack again in the next.
 
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Red Rick

Red Rick

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Gigs_98 said:
So do we actually think he can get a top 10? To me it seems like today was a day for pure climbers and he was extraordinarily strong. So based on that alone one would say he can top 5. But the fact that he's never really done much in gc's makes me very much doubt that. Top 10 still seems very possible tbh.
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I don't think this kind of breakaway was really pure climbers only, but a certain level was definitely necessary.

I think he could top 10. He isn't the sort of climber that just dies once a climb gets past 10 minutes, he just doesn't prioritize it. He was top 10 on the MTF in Tirreno for example, only 6s behind Future Grand Tour Winner Del Toro, and the lowest top 10 places very often have a few surprising danglers in them.

I honestly would just ask Pog tomorrow if he minds if I be in the break tomorrow again and really show Vingegaard that long range defense.
 
Red Rick

Red Rick

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Guys, I had an epiphany.

Ben Healy is going to win the Tour.

And I can already hear you think: "oh whelp, Red Rick has finally lost his marbles" but hear me out.

Ben Healy is simply going to be in every single breakaway. UAE lacks the manpower to control the breakaways, so they will not be able to control the might of the Irish Pirate.

"But what about Visma?"

Vingegaard will look at Pogacar and say "no you close it". And Pogacar will not when he cannot drop Vingegaard. And when he starts gesturing at Vingegaard or even Jorgenson and Kuss to cooperate, Simon Yates will whisper in Richard Plugge's ear. "I owe Carapaz a debt. A Visma always pays his debts" and Visma will not chase. Feintly, in the distance, we shall hear the screaming of Mauro Gianetti in all his PTSD. George Martin likes to say the only interesting thing to write about is the human heart in conflict with itself, which will then be exemplified by @Libertine Seguros conflict between agony at Visma/UAE winning and agony at Jonathan Vaughters winning the Tour.
 
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M

MagliaNera

Jul 3, 2025
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Gigs_98 said:
So do we actually think he can get a top 10? To me it seems like today was a day for pure climbers and he was extraordinarily strong. So based on that alone one would say he can top 5. But the fact that he's never really done much in gc's makes me very much doubt that. Top 10 still seems very possible tbh.
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In other words: can Ben Healy become the 2019 Alaphilippe of 2025?
 
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Red Rick

Red Rick

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Gigs_98 said:
Emu Buchmann was a TdF podium contender...
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He lost the podium because of the TTT.

But every contender that year was rated so much higher at the time. Especially Bernal. Thomas was just poor in that TdF overall and it basically took him until 2022 to have a good GT again. Kruijswijk was basically seen as finally delivering on that promise of that lost Giro by making the podium. Buchmann actually had some buzz around him if I remember correctly. Movistar had the full trident going. Some thought Alaphilippe would continue to be a GT contender. Uran had been 2nd 2 years before.

Even Pinot who had the most random unclutch freak injury I wouldn't see until Grigor Dimitrov a week ago would never reach close to any such heights again.

Now if you compare that to the 2019 Giro and Vuelta fields, the difference is even more surreal.
 
M

MagliaNera

Jul 3, 2025
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Gigs_98 said:
Only if Pogacar and Vingegaard turn into Pinot and Thomas. That 2019 story was as much a consequence of Alaphilippe being surprisingly good as of the rest of the gc field being incredibly weak. The latter is absolutely not the case this year.
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You're absolutely right, the weakness of the 2019 GC field (maybe the worst of the last decade?) played in Alaphilippe's favor, as did the cancellation of the queen stage. But this year we also have a bit of a special situation with (likely) two races within the race - the top 2 fighting for the win and then the best of the rest for the podium or top 10.

It's not a perfect analogy of course, but Healy's position reminds me of 2019 in the way that many people expected Alaphilippe to crack badly in the mountains and fall out of the top 10 eventually, but he managed to limit his losses very well, and this is something I could see Healy do as well. In this case it would still not be enough for 5th owing to the stronger field, but the top 10 is not out of reach, I think. Of course it will also depend on the team's priorities, whether they value a possible second stage win with Healy more highly than a top 10.

P.S.: Checking the results from 2019 again, I had forgotten that Alaphilippe also won the TT. Such a fantastic tour by him.
 
topcat

topcat

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MagliaNera said:
You're absolutely right, the weakness of the 2019 GC field (maybe the worst of the last decade?) played in Alaphilippe's favor, as did the cancellation of the queen stage. But this year we also have a bit of a special situation with (likely) two races within the race - the top 2 fighting for the win and then the best of the rest for the podium or top 10.

It's not a perfect analogy of course, but Healy's position reminds me of 2019 in the way that many people expected Alaphilippe to crack badly in the mountains and fall out of the top 10 eventually, but he managed to limit his losses very well, and this is something I could see Healy do as well. In this case it would still not be enough for 5th owing to the stronger field, but the top 10 is not out of reach, I think. Of course it will also depend on the team's priorities, whether they value a possible second stage win with Healy more highly than a top 10.

P.S.: Checking the results from 2019 again, I had forgotten that Alaphilippe also won the TT. Such a fantastic tour by him.
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How could you forget the burnout he did at the end of that tt? Legendary.
 
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masking_agent

masking_agent

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Good for him. I think he's reached the highest point of his tour though. He was a non factor in the Dauphine, so I don't expect more out of him. I would be surprised to see EF drilling it at the front on the mountain stages like how Sky/Ineos used to. Set that incredible high pace and have everyone behind hanging on. I think Tadej will make him and the entire team look amateurish when the real mountains hit.
 
Kedjan

Kedjan

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AnotherArmChair

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masking_agent said:
Good for him. I think he's reached the highest point of his tour though. He was a non factor in the Dauphine, so I don't expect more out of him. I would be surprised to see EF drilling it at the front on the mountain stages like how Sky/Ineos used to. Set that incredible high pace and have everyone behind hanging on. I think Tadej will make him and the entire team look amateurish when the real mountains hit.
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For Ben to do a top GC he only needs to follow wheels. And also he had no legs in the Dauphine as was not well after Ardennes. ...EF and Ben Healy will ride their own race and do what they want.....Why the hell would EF ride like SKY ...what bull . Everyone knows that Pog is the strongest but is everyone else supposed to roll over and do nothing ...such arrogant rubbish
 
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Penninepeddler

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I mean, in terms of a top 10...

he was 13th after 16 stages of last years tour while racing for stages and not GC.

Certainly possible. But frankly feel like for the next few years he should probably focus on stage hunting, maybe KOM, and Ardennes and hilly classics.
 
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Red Rick

Red Rick

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Penninepeddler said:
I mean, in terms of a top 10...

he was 13th after 16 stages of last years tour while racing for stages and not GC.

Certainly possible. But frankly feel like for the next few years he should probably focus on stage hunting, maybe KOM, and Ardennes and hilly classics.
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Obviously he shouldn't beocme a GC rider.

But I think taking a shot while it's there while you already have a stage win, a day in yellow and all that, is pretty worthwhile. I don't think there's many great stages left for him. Tomorrow is actually one of them, so he might as well get in that damn breakaway.
 
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