JPM London said:Ah, like Giro d'Italia for example - where he was supposed to be the captain last year but had a bad crash (either days before or during , don't remember which) or this year's Tour de Suisse - where he was the captain, but "only" got third... Ok, granted Suisse may not fall into the category of "big" races - but still.
I don't remember what the plan was for this year's Giro (it was Fuglsang or CA Sorenson as far as I remember), but obviously Richie Porte's riding changed those plans.
As for "major improvements" I think it's mainly a question of fewer mistakes and he'll be with the top riders all the way through... Major potential in that kid IMO.
Fuglsang was supposed to be captain in last years Vuelta, but as you said had a crash. This years Giro was CA Sørensen, but he got caught behind some crashed and that derailed his chances, though he did win a stage. Sørensen was part of the big escape group in the Giro, and would probably have tried to levy that into a good overall position if he hadn't already lost 30 minutes or so by then, so instead he worked for Porte. Fuglsang wasn't part of the Giro. Fuglsang as you said did well in the TdS, but his performance in the Tour was a bit disappointing, especially in the early part of the race. Obviously it's a bit hard to judge him on just one GT (minus the Vuelta where he crashed), but he yet to show he can be captain in a GT.