Teams & Riders Chris Froome Discussion Thread.

[Samu Cuenca]

I think there's progress. He was even able to attempt to get into the break today, so I won't be surprised if he manages that in the coming week. He obviously won't be able to win, but a stage top 10 would still be something.

 

[dacooley]

His rehab post original surgery didn't strike me as being optimal from what I remember. He had to have further surgery to remove a screw from the original surgery that was digging into his muscle in late 2019. Then he tried to the fix strength/power issue which the accident had left him with in his right leg, gaining weight in the process. That didn't seem to be very successful either. He said he only got equal strength/power in both legs fairly recently and I wouldn't be surprised if his right leg is still weaker than left. You could see his right leg quad was visibly smaller than the left leg until fairly recently.

Thanks for making it clear. Sounds quite plausible. Actually, while being healthy and uninjured, we don't think about what we are given absolutely naturally. Surely, pedaling is hugely based on a strong and symmetric two leg application of efforts. If that's really the main issue Froome has encountered, I'm rather surprised about him once again being a WT-level rider, given such a tangible physical shortcoming...

 

[ooo]

Froome will be wearing yellow jersey on tdf stage 10, if there will be 45 positive covid test results on rest day?

 

[Taxus4a]

44th in GC now.

He was second of his team today, behind Woody Who was with the best...I doubt Fulgsang is giving evetything days as today instead to save a little to try an stage, but he was 17th GC 2 days ago and for his team to hava a man top 15 could be something to considera and he is now with no options to that...

I think there's progress. He was even able to attempt to get into the break today, so I won't be surprised if he manages that in the coming week. He obviously won't be able to win, but a stage top 10 would still be something.

I didnt know he was trying the break but I think allí the team tried today. He has the bad luck to be the last tobdrop in the penultimate climb..he was very closenro hola..but later he was 5 km with a group of 5 riders trying to catch a pelotón wich didnt stop trying to catch Uran...so that way he drop quite early at the final climb. He is not saving energy, or at least not the way Fuglsang or Woods are doing, so it would be difficult to get an stage, but I hope he was fighthing for one or other way he keep this top 40 at GC or even try top 30. But better than top 32 in this Tour looks very difficult except by coronavirus issues as today happened with Guillaume Martín.

 

[gunara]

He was second of his team today, behind Woody Who

Is it Houle's nickname?

EDIT:
Okay, it's Woods, for the stage, not GC, sorry.
It'd still be a cool nickname for anyone, though

 

[movingtarget]

I mean maybe this is just riders not racing against Peak Froome?

Roglic is a top quality racer, but you can look at his Vuelta wins in the same way you are critiquing Froome's tour ones. You should probably view them far more harshly given the comparative difficulty of winning Le tour vs winning La Vuelta.

As for 2020... Richie Porte was 3rd! There's little reason to think Froome would be actually out of contention.

Porte was often snake bit in the Tour. He would have podiumed as well in 2016 if not for one of his ill timed mechanicals when he ran 5th but at least he didn't crash out. As for Froome's Tour wins. Don't see how you undervalue those but he also had the best team by a long way in his most successful years. Hadn't been at team like it since US Postal and Discovery and hasn't been a team near as good since and Froome's TT never let him down even when he had a rival in the mountains re Quintana.. Look at the mountain domestiques Froome had : Porte and Landa at their peaks etc. Froome would have been contending but Pogacar would have been his strongest rival simply because his TT riding is as good as his climbing. You can't say that about Froome's previous rivals plus he is more aggressive although maybe not as much as Contador who could be cavalier with his attacks sometimes and paid for it later.

 

[dacooley]

froome tried to spend as much energy as needed for gt wins during his prime seasons. No need to attack way too often. Yates showed in 2018 what might happen in case a rider attempts to gain time on his rivals everywhere he feels super.

 

[Taxus4a]

37th in the GC now. I am sure he can and will frame this as tremendous progress

Tremendous peogress from where??? It is not a superlevel, but of course he has the level to be racing le Tour and with more reason than the half of the pelotón. I dont know if some people said still he has not the level of a WT rider.
It is an important peogress of course from the level he has in march at Coppi Bartali.

I am not sure witch would have been his level past year in le Tour without that hard crash...but I think that lower than this year. He will show next days a better level IMO.

 

[SHAD0W93]

He crashed when he was 35 years old after 7 years at the top of the GT pack. He was not only old enough to be declining when he had a devastating crash, but top GT climbers never seem to be at peak powers for anywhere close to 10 years, which is where Froome would be now (2012-2022).

• Contador 2007-2014, clearly on decline after that
• Quintana 2013-2018
• Nibali 2010-2016, although it was really 2010-2014
• Lance 1999 - 2005
• Indurain 1991-1995
• etc.

Froome would be massively defying historical precedence to be any better now than he is based on his age, injuries, and time at the top.

Contador was still a top 10 climber and could have finished higher in GC if he wasn’t attacking at every point he could.

 

[SHAD0W93]

Without echelons, Porte was only 90s behind roglic in 2020. Porte is around the same age as Froome.

The way the race played out also benefited Porte’s strengths. Rojas is the same age as Cavendish.

 

[SHAD0W93]

21 minutes away from a top 20 place, and close the the best of the team. Can he hold it.

 

[Pinot's goat]

Froome says he has been struggling with illness this week, if he can get over the issues then he might have a chance of making a break.

 

[Pinot's goat]

Rojas is the same age as Cavendish.

Rojas was never a better rider than Cavendish whilst Froome was a better rider than Porte.

 

[Taxus4a]

Froome says he has been struggling with illness this week, if he can get over the issues then he might have a chance of making a break.

Not realky illness...just dust on the brest...that way he lost some minutes one day he shouldnt.

 

[SHAD0W93]

Rojas was never a better rider than Cavendish whilst Froome was a better rider than Porte.

Both riders had high peaks with Froome being the luckier of the two in regards to crashes before 2019. Porte in Froome’s position could have won the Tours Froome did with how strong the team was.

 

[ppanther92]

Tremendous peogress from where??? It is not a superlevel, but of course he has the level to be racing le Tour and with more reason than the half of the pelotón. I dont know if some people said still he has not the level of a WT rider.
It is an important peogress of course from the level he has in march at Coppi Bartali.

Fair enough - from being not WT level early this season to a justified place in the TdF roster of one of the weaker teams. Yes, I can give him credit for that.

 

[Taxus4a]

Fair enough - from being not WT level early this season to a justified place in the TdF roster of one of the weaker teams. Yes, I can give him credit for that.

All of them are in le Tour to look for stages. At the moment they got one. You can say at the end of le Tour one of the weakest, but no so far. Maybe his place was justified, but probably he will finish the best of his team at GC...he was stronger anyway at his first Td F at 2008, despiste to finish quite far on GC

 

[gunara]

Lol, now it almost seems that to the sceptics he's doing a good Tour, and his believers think it's not good enough. Might as well switch side.

 

[frisenfruitig]

He's pretty much at the level he was before he became a GT winner, we have come full circle.

 

[Rackham]

Lol, now it almost seems that to the sceptics he's doing a good Tour, and his believers think it's not good enough. Might as well switch side.

His believers 'believe' Froome. That's their first mistake.

Whilst everyone else has simply noted he's good enough to complete mountain stages in the TdF. Although the real fun starts on Wednesday, i.e. based on how he's been dropped so far as soon as the race hardens, he'll ship loads more time during the week.

So I say he's good enough to finish the race, but not good enough to emerge from anonymity. Maybe he'll win that nice person award or whatever it was as consolation again. If he was French, they'd probably give him the combativity award as well.

 

[gregrowlerson]

Both riders had high peaks with Froome being the luckier of the two in regards to crashes before 2019. Porte in Froome’s position could have won the Tours Froome did with how strong the team was.

You are giving Porte too much credit and Froome not enough. With the same opportunities Porte might have won one Tour, not four.

Peak Froome was incredibly consistent.

 

[SHAD0W93]

You are giving Porte too much credit and Froome not enough. With the same opportunities Porte might have won one Tour, not four.

Peak Froome was incredibly consistent.

Consistent that he was really good the first week and went down as it went on.

 

[witeken]

I've been battling a bit of sickness - Chris Froome following stage 9

I've been battling a bit of sickness - Chris Froome following stage 9

Chris Froome spoke to Daniel Friebe following stage 9 of the Tour de France

www.itv.com

Tour de France 2022, Chris Froome: “Mai visti così tanti corridori stremati alla fine della prima settimana”

Chris Froome commenta la prima settimana del Tour de France 2022. Il corridore della Israel-PremierTech si è fermato ai nostri microfoni al termine della tappa

cyclingpro.net

 

[TourOfSardinia]

Well that explains it then.
Phew!

 

[Ilmaestro99]

Both riders had high peaks with Froome being the luckier of the two in regards to crashes before 2019. Porte in Froome’s position could have won the Tours Froome did with how strong the team was.

Porte would never have done the Tour Vuelta double that Froome did, nor win the Giro.

At his peak he was probably a stronger climber than Froome, one of the best climbers I have ever seen. But he did not have the ability to hold his form for 2 grand tours like Froome did.

So many seasons Porte just ended his season after the Tour because he wanted time off. He could get his form to an incredible level but Froome could get his form to a good level and then had the desire and the dedication to go and win 2 grand tours.

Porte would have won in 2017 and possible 2015. That's about it