Contador and Valverde

[auscyclefan94]

bad sport -contador

i was very dissapointed on the way alberto contador rode the dauphine trying to negate evans by riding for valverde. he neither rode for himself or his team but rode as a team mate to valverde. phil liggett thought the tatics of contador and valverde were unsportsman like and that it was not in the spirit of racing. some say contador was trying to get in the head of evans before the big one had started. it wouldn't surprise me especially with bruyneel on astana who can be shifty. i think the way contador rode showed no respect to race organisers. evans does look good for tour!!! it is a shame that cadel is looked badly in the press but he does need to relax a bit more which could help him. i am surprised armstrong is second favourite for le tour. you must look at his form this year which hasn't been great and that he'll be riding for levi or alberto. the climbs at letour will be faster and with a lot more quality riders it will make life tough for him. still hope lance does well! i think there will be trouble at astana with leadership issues.

 

[yourwelcome]

I would not be surprised if the first TdF leadership issue at Astana is going to be how to deal with an insecure Contador throwing hissyfits and threatening to help out rival team leaders in order to beat his self-appointed arch nemesis Armstrong.

 

[BroDeal]

I would not be surprised if the first TdF leadership issue at Astana is going to be how to deal with an insecure Contador throwing hissyfits and threatening to help out rival team leaders in order to beat his self-appointed arch nemesis Armstrong.

Yup. A rider who signed on to a team with the understanding that he would be leader should not be upset when he has to wait until a race is half over before everyone falls in line and he gets full support. Before that a third of the team will be killing themselves to outdo the supposed leader instead of saving their energy. Nothing to be upset with at all. Nothing at all.

 

[Alpe d'Huez]

Well, Valverde won't really be at the Tour, will he? Though somehow I expect Kloden to be there.

I still think it's going to be very interesting to see how JB has his team ride the Tour. As Contador likes to attack, freelance, mix things up and blow things up, and others cover that as needed. And Lance, Levi, and Kloden all like to ride in a big train speeding over the climbs with no accelerations, to discourage attacking until attrition wears others out to the last 5k or so.

How do you guys think JB will have Astana ride?

Anyone think that Contador may get implicated in the CONI 2008 Cera re-test? (Remember that?) Or be named in the 50 riders with off bio-passport numbers? Or have OP brought up to hang over him? Real conspiracy? Maybe, but possible.

 

[patswana]

He will not be at Astana come 2010 and I think it is likely he will be at Caisse d'Epargne.

What odds that he tests positive to something in the one to two years after he leaves the Bruyneel stable?

 

[msjett]

I personally don't think Valverde will get to ride....but you never know, my crystal ball isn't working so hot of late. lol

As for the Astana situation, I have to wonder if this isn't just mind games, trying to get other riders think there are problems as then they may change tactics and Astana steam roll them and put AC on top of the podium? (crystal ball still not working!!!!)

As every year there is always some sort of hoohaa in the lead up. But honestly I think AC needs to have eyes in the back of his head, there are more than just the favourites gunning for him.

 

[Angliru]

That succinctly sums up all your posts on CE.

Feel free to use the ignore option instead of issuing your juvenile insults.
Surely if my posts were pro-Evans you would be singing a different tune but apparently you are so blinded by your allegiance to Evans that any opinion that is anything less than a genuflection to the greatness of Cadel is of no value to you.

 

[yourwelcome]

Yup. A rider who signed on to a team with the understanding that he would be leader should not be upset when he has to wait until a race is half over before everyone falls in line and he gets full support. Before that a third of the team will be killing themselves to outdo the supposed leader instead of saving their energy. Nothing to be upset with at all. Nothing at all.

None of the above has yet happened (or have I missed something?). Let's leave worrying about it until if and when it does.

Anyway, even if the worst were to befall him and he has to share some waterbottles with Lance for the first week and a half, he'd still be in a more cosseted position than the guys who came first and second last year, when Sastre had to work with the Schlecks and Evans was on his own whenever it mattered.

 

[Mr.DNA]

As for the Astana situation, I have to wonder if this isn't just mind games

I've wondered that too, but isn't this the team that was supposed to sweep the Grand Tours and win a bunch of the short stage races? And what have they won... Algarve, Basque Country and California?

Oh, almost forgot Gila.

 

[39*23t]

contador, liephiemer, armstrong all vying for leadership can't wait for vino to come back end of july it will remind him of the old days at telekom with klodoen chasing him down

 

[Alpe d'Huez]

I've wondered that too Mr. DNA. This is a very possible senario:

For over two weeks the leaders all watch each other with no major attacks - and the mountain stages with short uphill finishes and long descents will almost guarantee this - However, there's been a lot of gamesmanship and one upping between the Astana riders, with a lot of tension, and talk in the press. We get to the final ITT and a slew of riders are bunched up with one another. After that, we still have both Lance and Contador, along with several others, all within 2 minutes of each other as we head to the Ventoux. But the mind games and attacks have worn out Astana a little, and the train they try to set going up the Ventoux is too slow, and an attack is launched 10k from the top by Sastre, who is 1:21 behind, he takes Evans who is about the same with him, and also one of the Schlecks, who are about another minute back. Contador has run out of steam, and Lance can't match the pace. Sastre takes the Stage, and the Tour, and Astana has ridden each other right off the podium.

 

[ndpuck]

That's a nice fantasy situation.
It won't happen though. Levi and Lance will have already ridden themselves out of GC contention long before Ventoux rolls around, so Contador won't have to worry about silly in-fighting with other Astana team members. That's all for show in the media anyway.

Sastre won't repeat...

 

[peloton]

Well, Valverde won't really be at the Tour, will he? Though somehow I expect Kloden to be there.

I still think it's going to be very interesting to see how JB has his team ride the Tour. As Contador likes to attack, freelance, mix things up and blow things up, and others cover that as needed. And Lance, Levi, and Kloden all like to ride in a big train speeding over the climbs with no accelerations, to discourage attacking until attrition wears others out to the last 5k or so.

How do you guys think JB will have Astana ride?

Anyone think that Contador may get implicated in the CONI 2008 Cera re-test? (Remember that?) Or be named in the 50 riders with off bio-passport numbers? Or have OP brought up to hang over him? Real conspiracy? Maybe, but possible.

no.
anyone who thinks LA has a chance to win his 8th Tour this year, are delusional.

 

[BroDeal]

no.
anyone who thinks LA has a chance to win his 8th Tour this year, are delusional.

I am not so sure. If the sport were clean then I would agree. Horner, though, is climbing better than ever; and Leipheimer gets better every year even though he should be over the hill and rapidly accelerating down the other side. At the end of the Giro, Armstrong was not far off the contenders on the climbs.

It also looks like the ASO, as part of the agreement with the UCI and Armstrong last year, might have tailored the course to better suit Armstrong.

I also do not have a huge amount of respect for the current TdF contenders. If something happens to Contador then what?

 

[BigBoat]

The TTT will favor the Astana squad BIG TIME. Lance will be some time ahead at this point and the long ITTs will favor Lance too since he's heavier (and therefore with more total power) that contra-doper.

 

[Opichi]

Valverde y Contrador

Has anyone taken into consideration the fact that Berto said he came to test himself, not to win. We all know he probably could have, and his team did.

All was fair and Valverde, who most likely will not be given the chance to prove himself in July already has at the Dauphine...now twice. Unless one was blind, the entire GCE team worked their asses off! Cadel did earn more respect from me for his attacks, but it was not simply Contrador's resistance that aided AV. Perhaps if he made more friends in the peleton...? I enjoy seeing team lines blurred as much as I love seeing my team slay.

As to the rest--one should leave that to the facts--the cycling legal system is being bent, whether by Italy...(Might we reflect on Schleck as the adverse) Valverde has never tested positive. Leave it to them and let us be able to watch all race when we are not ourselves.

 

[BroDeal]

As to the rest--one should leave that to the facts--the cycling legal system is being bent, whether by Italy...(Might we reflect on Schleck as the adverse) Valverde has never tested positive.

Sounds like Armstrong. Never tested positive...other than a DNA match for blood stored at Dr. Fuentes' high performance blood shop.

 

[krebs303]

Sounds like Armstrong. Never tested positive...other than a DNA match for blood stored at Dr. Fuentes' high performance blood shop.

I'm sorry if this has been gone over before and I somehow have missed it. I know of 99,epo,and urine samples. But don't recall Armstrong,DNA,blood bags and Fuentes being mentioned together. If it has been gone over in detail I would be happy to go back and read it. But since most threads seem to end up about Armstrong, dope or both. I really don't know where to even begin to look.
I once was in denial about the extent of the doping problem but after 3 months on this forum I have taken a more critical look. I can remember when I thought carbo-loading was hi-tech!

 

[BroDeal]

I'm sorry if this has been gone over before and I somehow have missed it. I know of 99,epo,and urine samples. But don't recall Armstrong,DNA,blood bags and Fuentes being mentioned together. If it has been gone over in detail I would be happy to go back and read it. But since most threads seem to end up about Armstrong, dope or both. I really don't know where to even begin to look.
I once was in denial about the extent of the doping problem but after 3 months on this forum I have taken a more critical look. I can remember when I thought carbo-loading was hi-tech!

The comment was not supposed to link Armstrong with Fuentes. Armstrong and his supporters always use a defense that Armstrong never tested positive. They conveniently forget that EPO was found in his 1999 urine samples. It is rather funny to see Valverde's supporters also use this same defence despite Valverde's blood being matched to stored blood.

 

[krebs303]

The comment was not supposed to link Armstrong with Fuentes. Armstrong and his supporters always use a defense that Armstrong never tested positive. They conveniently forget that EPO was found in his 1999 urine samples. It is rather funny to see Valverde's supporters also use this same defence despite Valverde's blood being matched to stored blood.

OK Thanks, I thought I was going senile

 

[patswana]

Valverde has never tested positive.

Neither did Marion Jones. So she should get her Sydney Olympic medals back.

 

[Alpe d'Huez]

I am not so sure. If the sport were clean then I would agree. Horner, though, is climbing better than ever; and Leipheimer gets better every year even though he should be over the hill and rapidly accelerating down the other side. At the end of the Giro, Armstrong was not far off the contenders on the climbs.

I agree, which is why I posted what I did. In all logical consideration, Lance should have a hard time cracking the top 20, maybe top 10, at the Tour, and I do think he will suffer on the climbs. But the course suits him very much so, with exception to the Ventoux. So my scenario (not a prediction, btw) is not impossible.

OK Thanks, I thought I was going senile

Actually, one of the names attached to the blood bags and books in OP is "Cowboy". No match was ever made (or attempted to be made) to any rider. How many do you think may have such a nickname? Who would you guess it might be?

 

[BroDeal]

Actually, one of the names attached to the blood bags and books in OP is "Cowboy". No match was ever made (or attempted to be made) to any rider. How many do you think may have such a nickname? Who would you guess it might be?

I have read that there is a Spanish rider, I forget which one, who has the nickname "cowboy" because of his usual hand gestures as he crosses the line when he wins. I do not mean Contador.

 

[Alpe d'Huez]

Either way, we'll never know for sure.

Good point Patswana.

 

[patswana]

Actually, one of the names attached to the blood bags and books in OP is "Cowboy". No match was ever made (or attempted to be made) to any rider. How many do you think may have such a nickname? Who would you guess it might be?

That would not be Armstrong. He used Dr. Ferrari.