Florian Lipowitz is the new German GC hope discussion thread

[Faserr]

No weakness at the moment. I thought he could get top10, but podium is a surprise. Lets see what happens tomorrow. I think Vlasov is back to support at better weather.

He will ride the Tour I think.

 

[MLKarlos]

I really enjoyed watching him Race the paar week. Iam pretty impressed how he handles everything with the Bad weather etc. and anticipated Vismas move earlier this week.

Agree. Also see more potential then Buchmann. Buchmann was/is a pure climber without any punch and any TT skills.

 

[Remy55]

Whats the next step for him? Tour as helper for Roglic and next year leader at Giro?

 

[Earns1985]

He is right now only scheduled for two more races until the tour. He said, that he will ride the Itzulia in the helper role and then Dauphine as leader. I also think, that tour this year as domestique for Roglic will be the most likely scenario.

I am also looking forward to his career and his next races!

 

[Berniece]

Whats the next step for him? Tour as helper for Roglic and next year leader at Giro?

He'll only be a domestique for Roglic if Roglic is actually able to perform two GT's in a row. In form Roglic is the better rider, but not sure what to expect from him in the TDF after a Giro. So maybe, if he underperforms they can let Lipowitz do his thing in the Tour.

 

[Lequack]

Seems to be in good form in the Basque country.

 

[Links2003]

He has a very good year so far. It's a shame that his teammates don't seem to be in form at the moment. Then he would at least be second. He has probably also improved in the time trial. He has one weakness and that hurts in modern cycling: sprinting and explosiveness. I'm curious to see where his path will take him.

 

[Faserr]

Strong ride. Shame about the crash, but in the end you can't close one minute when the race is full on.

 

[CyclistAbi]

Too bad a mechanical prevented a podium finish nonetheless strong and confident performance.

 

[Dazed and Confused]

5th in the juniors TT today. Pretty damn good. Still not quite enough to get the jersey when Remco is in full force, but what can you do. Keep going.

 

[Filippo_3467]

The dauphine was mentioned as the goal of the season for Lipowitz. that could have changed after the great results in P-N and Itzulia but maybe he's still peaking for the Dauphine and the Tour is more about stage hunting and supporting Roglic if necessary.

At the moment he looks good for a Top5 maybe even the favourite for the fourth spot...but you never know. The penultimate stage could be too much for Remco and then the podium is in play.

 

[ppanther92]

Would be nice if he can show this in the Tour as well. If so (climbing within 20s of Vingegaard on a 20min climb and better than Evenepoel), I would argue Bora has a new leader and Roglic is history.

 

[TrekCyclist]

Lipowitz did great today. But I would not send him as GC leader into the TdF. Maybe a double leadership would be better. Like Jumbo in 2022 or Telekom in 1997 / 2004.

 

[Samu Cuenca]

They should just keep him as close as possible in case it can be advantageous for the team and/or Roglič or if they end up with another Pellizzari scenario on their hands and he becomes the leader later on.

 

[Cycling111]

They can't send him as a leader without knowing if he can perform in three weeks.

But they shouldn't sacrifice him like Pellizzari at the Giro, who had already lost too much time when Roglic retired, for being a domestique.

 

[AlfaLum]

They can ride with two or even three potential captains in this GT. It is not as if they have to carry the weight of this race.

 

[Valv.Piti]

Lipowitz did great today. But I would not send him as GC leader into the TdF. Maybe a double leadership would be better. Like Jumbo in 2022 or Telekom in 1997 / 2004.

I like the Telekom reference! An established rider with a young German on the come up.

Bora should indeed go into the race with a double leader strategy. Not only because Lipo has taken another step, but also because Roglic' GT history lately has been very poor from a crash perspective. No Giulio situations, please

 

[Lequack]

If he didn't waste energy with the first attack, he would probably be even better on the last climb.

 

[Links2003]

They should just keep him as close as possible in case it can be advantageous for the team and/or Roglič or if they end up with another Pellizzari scenario on their hands and he becomes the leader later on.

This is a dangerous strategy if the rest of the team is not strong on the mountain. Especially as Lipowitz has his season highlight at the Dauphine, while everyone else is training specifically for the Tour.

The rest of the team for the mountains will probably not be strong. One has to hope that Vlasov shows what he can do. Whether Martinez will start remains to be seen, he was super far from his normal form at the Giro. The rest of the riders won't be able to help on the mountain.
If you rely on two captains, rider A will lose some time, then rider B will lose some time because no one will help.
I would bet on Roglic as planned. That also takes the pressure off Lipo. Even at the risk that neither of them will be far ahead in the GC. It's better to set up the whole team offensively for all stages and continue to build up Lipo slowly.

 

[Red Rick]

If he didn't waste energy with the first attack, he would probably be even better on the last climb.

Riding 20m in front of a group on an 8% climb for a few minutes 45 minutes before the MTF isn't gonna make a huge difference

 

[CyclistAbi]

Good form at Dauphiné and keep it going.

 

[Krzysztof_O]

This guy is really good. Can he compete for a podium spot at the Tour? (if his leader has some "adventures"). Or is it still too difficult for him now?

 

[Links2003]

This guy is really good. Can he compete for a podium spot at the Tour? (if his leader has some "adventures"). Or is it still too difficult for him now?

The way it is developing, that may be possible in the future. But more likely at the Vuelta or the Giro when not all the top stars are there. If he prepares himself in a targeted manner, a lot is certainly possible in the future. Not this year because he trained for the Dauphine.
He showed that at the Vuelta last year that he is a rider who can be good over 3 weeks. But one thing at a time. He still has a lot to learn, but he's doing a great job.

 

[Red Rick]

This guy is really good. Can he compete for a podium spot at the Tour? (if his leader has some "adventures"). Or is it still too difficult for him now?

I believe it when I see it.

I've seen too many riders have a flash in the Dauphine before completely bricking at the TdF. You also just expect Evenepoel to be a lot better than this at the Tour.

Having said that, letting him stay in the peloton if everyone else has to wait for Roglic if something happens is a no brainer for me. He can be a back up top 5 candidate

 

[Netserk]

Depends on how he prepared for the Dauphiné. If this is his peak, then it's better to wait for the Vuelta. If he prepared with an eye on the Tour and is confident that he can maintain this form or improve it for the next 6 weeks, then he should be a protected rider in the Tour.