Can Landa win the Giro?

[Taxus4a]

Re:

I think you are discounting the fact that Majka had bad food poisoning (or other stomach sickness, I am not sure) during the third week of Giro.
He was climbing with the best and had great TT prior to that. And he was as strong as Pinot in the Tour. I am expecting big things from him this Tour and think we will finally see him climbing with the best. I would like to see a top 10 from him, maybe higher if he doesn't have to set the pace too often. The beginning of the season was worrying but I think he will be fine by the TdF

Maybe I am wrong, I dont want to give my opinion to things I dont know very well, becouse I didnt follow quite well Majka.

He was in Tour climbing with Pinot some days, not all the Tour, to be in GC is really demanding, Majka is meritable becouse he rode before the Giro in GC at a hight level.

If Majka has some problems in the Giro things are different... but I think, that he cant climb like Landa now, I think only Quintana can... but Makja, Quintana, Aru and Pinot are better in ITT, maybe Landa can improve, I dont know, but he is worse.

I thougth Landa was a climber like Aru and Pinot (and Dombroski), but this Giro could change my mind.

 

[Ataraxus]

Re:

I hope so, and I think so, and I know he must be thinking that. I thought that last years as well, becouse he was stronger than Aru on Trentino and Nibali said that Landa would be very dangerous in the Giro, but Landa crashed, and lost time, he had a similar Giro that Porte this year, and he was just working for Aru, taking bottles of the car and things like that, helping some days in the mountains.

I think that with the help of Aru, 4 minutes is not too much with a difficult stage, the Queen stage of this Giro, Cervinia, and another, long as well, with Finestre.

But Contador is strong, he has an strong team, he hasexperience and if he is clever he can lose time but never the Giro.

But I know Alberto quite well, he dont want anybody said Landa was stronger at the end of the Giro, maybe Landa climb always better than him all the Giro, and he wanst unleashed, Alberto is really competitive, he dont like never lose, so he will try that Landa dont take any time, or just a little that he can said, there were 2 againts 1, but he is not lo allow Landa put more than 1 minute on him any day, so that is the only thing that could make Alberto lose, his ambition... but Landa now, climbs stronger than Alberto, and with 2 stage like that at the end of the Giro, Landa is going to put time, I am sure 4 minutes? I dream with that, difficult, of course, but posssible, Savoldelli losed only in Finestre stage 2 minutes, and although Landa and Contador are climbing clearly slower than Pantani, Tonkov, Gotti, and those people, differences are going the same or more, becouse in Mortirolo stage, the 18th was at more than 10 minutes.

Of course is alberto has again some problem as punctures, crash,...easier...

Landa has had very bad luck along his career, the same as Urán, but This Giro everything is perfect for him, no crash, no bad luck, perfect shape, no pressure, just help, quite protected, work a little, strong team, hight motivation.. the only problem, and ITT too long, but a GT must be like that, and he did a decent ITT, and well, it would be better he were free before today, but it is normal how things has happend, Aru deserved that leadership so far..

Contador has everything but a strong team. At 54 km to go in the flat part before Mortirolo he had 5 teammates. At 52.4 km to go and still in the flat he had only Kreuziger. That is low team performance in soo many levels.

Back on Landa, I don't know if he can win the Giro but I believe he'll be closer in GC to Contador than he is now. Will it be because of his team or because of himself, remains to be seen. Judging from what I've seen in Campiglio and Aprica I'm inclined to believe both for the moment.

 

[Mr.White]

Re:

I think you are discounting the fact that Majka had bad food poisoning (or other stomach sickness, I am not sure) during the third week of Giro.
He was climbing with the best and had great TT prior to that. And he was as strong as Pinot in the Tour. I am expecting big things from him this Tour and think we will finally see him climbing with the best. I would like to see a top 10 from him, maybe higher if he doesn't have to set the pace too often. The beginning of the season was worrying but I think he will be fine by the TdF

He was not strong as Pinot, on some days he was, on some days even stronger, but overall not. Pinot rode flat out every day, while Majka had some days off. Also he was never on a level Landa is now

 

[damian13ster]

Re: Re:

I think you are discounting the fact that Majka had bad food poisoning (or other stomach sickness, I am not sure) during the third week of Giro.
He was climbing with the best and had great TT prior to that. And he was as strong as Pinot in the Tour. I am expecting big things from him this Tour and think we will finally see him climbing with the best. I would like to see a top 10 from him, maybe higher if he doesn't have to set the pace too often. The beginning of the season was worrying but I think he will be fine by the TdF

Maybe I am wrong, I dont want to give my opinion to things I dont know very well, becouse I didnt follow quite well Majka.

He was in Tour climbing with Pinot some days, not all the Tour, to be in GC is really demanding, Majka is meritable becouse he rode before the Giro in GC at a hight level.

If Majka has some problems in the Giro things are different... but I think, that he cant climb like Landa now, I think only Quintana can... but Makja, Quintana, Aru and Pinot are better in ITT, maybe Landa can improve, I dont know, but he is worse.

I thougth Landa was a climber like Aru and Pinot (and Dombroski), but this Giro could change my mind.

Not sure if Majka has as high of an upside as a climber, but he showed really good recovery, vastly improved TT, and doesn't have bad days in GTs when healthy. Very good at limiting the losses. I am fairly confident that he would be in 2nd place at this point in the race due to his TT which is much better than Aru's and just looking at the level of opposition (the pace on climbs isn't ridiculous)

 

[Taxus4a]

Re: Re:

I hope so, and I think so, and I know he must be thinking that. I thought that last years as well, becouse he was stronger than Aru on Trentino and Nibali said that Landa would be very dangerous in the Giro, but Landa crashed, and lost time, he had a similar Giro that Porte this year, and he was just working for Aru, taking bottles of the car and things like that, helping some days in the mountains.

I think that with the help of Aru, 4 minutes is not too much with a difficult stage, the Queen stage of this Giro, Cervinia, and another, long as well, with Finestre.

But Contador is strong, he has an strong team, he hasexperience and if he is clever he can lose time but never the Giro.

But I know Alberto quite well, he dont want anybody said Landa was stronger at the end of the Giro, maybe Landa climb always better than him all the Giro, and he wanst unleashed, Alberto is really competitive, he dont like never lose, so he will try that Landa dont take any time, or just a little that he can said, there were 2 againts 1, but he is not lo allow Landa put more than 1 minute on him any day, so that is the only thing that could make Alberto lose, his ambition... but Landa now, climbs stronger than Alberto, and with 2 stage like that at the end of the Giro, Landa is going to put time, I am sure 4 minutes? I dream with that, difficult, of course, but posssible, Savoldelli losed only in Finestre stage 2 minutes, and although Landa and Contador are climbing clearly slower than Pantani, Tonkov, Gotti, and those people, differences are going the same or more, becouse in Mortirolo stage, the 18th was at more than 10 minutes.

Of course is alberto has again some problem as punctures, crash,...easier...

Landa has had very bad luck along his career, the same as Urán, but This Giro everything is perfect for him, no crash, no bad luck, perfect shape, no pressure, just help, quite protected, work a little, strong team, hight motivation.. the only problem, and ITT too long, but a GT must be like that, and he did a decent ITT, and well, it would be better he were free before today, but it is normal how things has happend, Aru deserved that leadership so far..

Contador has everything but a strong team. At 54 km to go in the flat part before Mortirolo he had 5 teammates. At 52.4 km to go and still in the flat he had only Kreuziger. That is low team performance in soo many levels.

Back on Landa, I don't know if he can win the Giro but I believe he'll be closer in GC to Contador than he is now. Will it be because of his team or because of himself, remains to be seen. Judging from what I've seen in Campiglio and Aprica I'm inclined to believe both for the moment.

Contador has a very strong team, they are been working since the first day, with pink or witout it. Astana is stronger in the climbs, but overall Saxo has been so powerfull or more.

But Astana has really good riders:

malacarna was always promising, a rider for everything, Tiralongo has several important wins, cataldo has been top ten of the Giro , champion ITT Italian, won in quen stage of the Vuelta,... Luis leon won a Paris nice to Contador, three stages on the Tour, ... Aru is the more promising Italian rider, Landa is a supertalent on the climbs, Kangert is a very good rider as well, it is difficult to improve that teram in a race as the Giro.

But Saxo has work much more, maybe we not always watched that on TV, but always working, it is normal Kreuziger is really tired.

 

[WheelofGear]

Send Rogers up the road. Contador will be isolated up the climb anyways with the strong Astana train.

 

[Asero831]

Would you rank Landa higher than Pinot, Rodriguez and Valverde?

 

[damian13ster]

Re:

Would you rank Landa higher than Pinot, Rodriguez and Valverde?

No, at least not yet.
And probably never above Valverde because the guy is one of the GOATs, unless you mean just pure high-gradient, long climb.

 

[Ataraxus]

Re: Re:

I hope so, and I think so, and I know he must be thinking that. I thought that last years as well, becouse he was stronger than Aru on Trentino and Nibali said that Landa would be very dangerous in the Giro, but Landa crashed, and lost time, he had a similar Giro that Porte this year, and he was just working for Aru, taking bottles of the car and things like that, helping some days in the mountains.

I think that with the help of Aru, 4 minutes is not too much with a difficult stage, the Queen stage of this Giro, Cervinia, and another, long as well, with Finestre.

But Contador is strong, he has an strong team, he hasexperience and if he is clever he can lose time but never the Giro.

But I know Alberto quite well, he dont want anybody said Landa was stronger at the end of the Giro, maybe Landa climb always better than him all the Giro, and he wanst unleashed, Alberto is really competitive, he dont like never lose, so he will try that Landa dont take any time, or just a little that he can said, there were 2 againts 1, but he is not lo allow Landa put more than 1 minute on him any day, so that is the only thing that could make Alberto lose, his ambition... but Landa now, climbs stronger than Alberto, and with 2 stage like that at the end of the Giro, Landa is going to put time, I am sure 4 minutes? I dream with that, difficult, of course, but posssible, Savoldelli losed only in Finestre stage 2 minutes, and although Landa and Contador are climbing clearly slower than Pantani, Tonkov, Gotti, and those people, differences are going the same or more, becouse in Mortirolo stage, the 18th was at more than 10 minutes.

Of course is alberto has again some problem as punctures, crash,...easier...

Landa has had very bad luck along his career, the same as Urán, but This Giro everything is perfect for him, no crash, no bad luck, perfect shape, no pressure, just help, quite protected, work a little, strong team, hight motivation.. the only problem, and ITT too long, but a GT must be like that, and he did a decent ITT, and well, it would be better he were free before today, but it is normal how things has happend, Aru deserved that leadership so far..

Contador has everything but a strong team. At 54 km to go in the flat part before Mortirolo he had 5 teammates. At 52.4 km to go and still in the flat he had only Kreuziger. That is low team performance in soo many levels.

Back on Landa, I don't know if he can win the Giro but I believe he'll be closer in GC to Contador than he is now. Will it be because of his team or because of himself, remains to be seen. Judging from what I've seen in Campiglio and Aprica I'm inclined to believe both for the moment.

Talking about predictions

 

[Mr.White]

he could of...

 

[ggusta]

This year? Probably not.

 

[jmdirt]

I say that he will end up 3rd.

 

[Jelantik]

we'll see how he is on Vuelta. Vino has hinted that he wanted Aru to be in the Tour (depending his recovery).But when vino wants, vino gets. If Aru goes to the tour, it opens the door for Landa to be the outright leader for Vuelta. We can see if his Giro is one time performance or he is another diamond in the rough.

 

[ggusta]

Re:

we'll see how he is on Vuelta. Vino has hinted that he wanted Aru to be in the Tour (depending his recovery).But when vino wants, vino gets. If Aru goes to the tour, it opens the door for Landa to be the outright leader for Vuelta. We can see if his Giro is one time performance or he is another diamond in the rough.

Should this thread be renamed or a new thread started?

 

[The_Cheech]

I don't know if he can, but crying is not going to help.

And the fact that he is a sore loser is not going to help.

Did you see him not take his hat off when the national anthems were being played?

What a ***.

 

[Brullnux]

Re:

I don't know if he can, but crying is not going to help.

And the fact that he is a sore loser is not going to help.

Did you see him not take his hat off when the national anthems were being played?

What a ***.

He was crying because he loves the sport and he would've loved to take such a prestigious win in a memorable stage. If anything, it shows how much cycling means to him.

I don't really think he is a sore loser. He was annoyed and angry, rightly so, with the terrible tactics and internal politics of the team.

I'm not sure he did it on purpose. It's one of the first times he has ever been on a GC podium so it was a new experience. Also I don't know why but he doesn't strike me as incredibly smart, so it was probably an accident. I may be wrong, if I am, then it was a political statement, and it is like James McLean(?) the Irish player who didn't wear a poppy and got abused on Twitter.

In short: he isn't a ***.

 

[tristecsinamigos]

Re:

Did you see him not take his hat off when the national anthems were being played?

Maybe he is a "Gora Euskal Herria askatuta!" supporter.

 

[Taxus4a]

Re: Re:

Did you see him not take his hat off when the national anthems were being played?

Maybe he is a "Gora Euskal Herria askatuta!" supporter.

Maybe yes or maybe not, lot of people in Spain dont like the flag nor the spanish anthems, nor the way the country is, in Castilla, in Andalucia.. in all this nation of nations.

But what he do doesnt mean anything.

But Contador always a false boy... he pays his tax in Swizerland.