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Teams & Riders Fabio Aru discussion thread

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SeriousSam said:
Brullnux said:
lenric said:
SafeBet said:
They never really believed he could beat Contador, I fear. And at the moment Aru looks like someone who's missed some days of training at the wrong time. Maybe Astana knows he's going to fade, and that would explain why they are trying to have as many options still in GC contention. I wouldn't be surprised if Landa or Cataldo end up being the best placed Astana riders at the end of the Giro. Could be pessimism on my part, but he really looked sluggish yesterday.

Possibly.

But Nibali doesn't stand a chance against Froome (peak form) or this year Giro's Contador (peak Contador screws Nibali easily).
Nibali 2014 Tour was on par with Froome in 2013. Contador vs Nibali we have only really seen once, and Contador beat him by 6 minutes. However, this was 4 years ago, and Nibali has improved massively, whereas Contador not so much. Peak Contador is slightly better than Nibali and Froome, but we will probably not see peak Contador at the Tour.

I know that 2014 Nibali's estimated w/kg curve as a function of length of effort is similar to 2013 Froome's, but I still find it hard to believe Nibali was that good. If he really was that good, why is it he is only 4th most likely to win the Tour, significantly less likely than Froome, Quintana and even Double-attempting Contador according to the bookies? In my opinion, it's because he just cannot climb like they can.

He wasn't even in the Eurosport promo last year for TdF yet he won it. He surely could not climb like Froome in 2012 and Contador in 2011 and we will never know if he could in 2014. Maybe we will find out in July. As for Quintana they never climbed together in a GT.
 
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a good ride by Aru today. Obviously he lacks something to be at contador level but he's fighting. I'd like to see him try an attack in a downhill. Now that would be the proof that he's not happy with riding for 2nd.
 
Jul 19, 2010
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Re:

Pantani_lives said:
It would be interesting if Astana sent Landa or Cataldo in the attack on the Mortirolo or the Finestre to put Contador's team under pressure. I hope they won't just ride to defend Aru's second place.

if they do, Aru's GC position might be jeopardized. Today Landa attacked, but what he did, he dropped Aru behind. If Astana send Landa up ahead, Contador follows, then game over for Aru second place. So far Landa has matched Contador stride for stride. But that doesn't mean Contador is weak either. Remember 2014 Vuelta, when Purito and Valverde screwed Contador when they got a chance to distance Froome? After that stage, (I forget what stage), when Froome finally attacked (which was a good thing for Contador) because Froome/Contador dropped those two clowns and at the top Contador dropped Froome. That similar situation can happen again. Contador can use Landa to drop Aru, then drop Landa.
 
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Jelantik said:
Pantani_lives said:
It would be interesting if Astana sent Landa or Cataldo in the attack on the Mortirolo or the Finestre to put Contador's team under pressure. I hope they won't just ride to defend Aru's second place.

if they do, Aru's GC position might be jeopardized. Today Landa attacked, but what he did, he dropped Aru behind. If Astana send Landa up ahead, Contador follows, then game over for Aru second place.

Only if others like Konig and Amador are also able to follow Landa/Contador which seems unlikely and Aru meanwhile can tailgate anyone that does indeed set off after them and should be perfectly capable of doing that. Otherwise the worst that can happen is Aru and Landa switch places, which still leaves Astana with 2nd and 3rd.

I'm not sure that a Landa attack on the Mortirolo is the right tactic though as it's the obvious place to attack on the stage and probably where Contador is also plotting an attack. Perhaps if Landa attacks right at the bottom it could leave Contador in a quandary.

I don't know what the weather is scheduled to be like on Tuesday, but perhaps Aru could try a downhill attack off the Mortirolo. I don't really know if Aru is considered a better descender than Contador or not, but Contador may be unwilling to take too many risks. With this in mind...Astana could try getting a non-GC threat into the early break as someone who could potentially pace him to Aprica.
 
Jul 11, 2013
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A little more tongue + slinging the bike around and we would have a contester for Voeckler :p

The Italian Voeckler AKA: Jafar (twitter nick)


MgruKdl.jpg
 
Aug 31, 2012
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I lol'd at Aru when he cracked, but upon reflection, he did show commendable mental fortitude today when the legs weren't there. Bodes well for his future.
 
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Re:

SeriousSam said:
I lol'd at Aru when he cracked, but upon reflection, he did show commendable mental fortitude today when the legs weren't there. Bodes well for his future.

Yes... A significant difference between him and Porte...

When the latter cracks it is for good... Aru on the other hand limit his losses very well (at least today)

Being able to hold tight on a bad day is important when considering his later chances to grab a GT...

We shall see...
 
Jul 19, 2010
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Jspear said:
Anyone think Aru is in danger of loosing his 3rd place? Amador will no doubt be eager to exploit any further weaknesses he sees in Aru.

with cheeky move by katusha during this stage when AC got mechanical, from now on Aru will have to defend himself since Landa is going to follow Contador. Better hope that Aru isn't getting mechanical when that happens again because he will be done for good. (forget about chasing ala contador). Today Aru got out climbed by Trovimov and Amador. There are still hard mountain ahead and Trovimov and Amador are smelling the blood.
 
Jun 30, 2014
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Re: Re:

Rollthedice said:
mrhender said:
A little more tongue + slinging the bike around and we would have a contester for Voeckler :p

The Italian Voeckler AKA: Jafar (twitter nick)


MgruKdl.jpg

That guy in the back is no slouch either. Anyway imagine Contador is not in the race, a Giro with Astana 1-2 for the glorious people of Kazakhstan.
The guy in the back wins the Voeckler impressionation contest hands down, sorry Fabio.
 
Re: Re:

Jelantik said:
Jspear said:
Anyone think Aru is in danger of loosing his 3rd place? Amador will no doubt be eager to exploit any further weaknesses he sees in Aru.

with cheeky move by katusha during this stage when AC got mechanical, from now on Aru will have to defend himself since Landa is going to follow Contador. Better hope that Aru isn't getting mechanical when that happens again because he will be done for good. (forget about chasing ala contador). Today Aru got out climbed by Trovimov and Amador. There are still hard mountain ahead and Trovimov and Amador are smelling the blood.
That mainly happened because he tried to defeat Contador and killed himself. There's no way Amador or Trofimov will overtake him, unless Aru totally blows apart a la Mayo!

Still in that case Kruiswijk may be the man to net a lucky podium spot!
 
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Considering that he was left alone chasing for 30km two groups ahead of him and with his morale underground it's a wonder he took only two minutes. Aru pays the price of being not experienced (wasting energies to sprint during the first stages) but the white jersey and a place on the podium should be enough for a 24 years old rider. He showed an impressive tenacity today, I'm sure he's one of the most promising GT riders for the future but his time has not arrived yet.
 
Re: Re:

Rollthedice said:
Flamin said:
Aru paid a price for going too fast early on, that's it. His podium spot is fine.

True. He was overly enthusiastic and his ultra aggressive team made it even more harder too soon in the race. He showed great character today and I hope he'll recover to make some great racing in the following days.
His attacks were not long range and therefore inconsequential, No his race fell apart when he forgot to eat. Once you get a calorie deficit it is difficult to makeup and the body strength always deteriorates.