Giro 2019 Field Discussion/Speculation

[Armchair cyclist]

Would be funny if sky sends bernal to the tour instead of the giro to get the podium sweep

First the Giro (which he will win), then the Tour (to help the old british dudes). Obviously.

To help the old british dudes to #2nd and #3rd after yours truly

Red Rick to win the Tour, supported by Team Sky?

 

[Red Rick]

Would be funny if sky sends bernal to the tour instead of the giro to get the podium sweep

First the Giro (which he will win), then the Tour (to help the old british dudes). Obviously.

To help the old british dudes to #2nd and #3rd after yours truly

Red Rick to win the Tour, supported by Team Sky?

I was talking about Egan Bernal

Maybe I was also talking about Red Rick

 

[rick james]

Re:

I'm fairly confident that no Sky rider will win the 2019 TDF - Froome is on the decline and can Thomas repeat his form - Strangest thing is this the best TDF profile for a number of years.

We’ve been hearing Froome is on the decline for the last 3 years

 

[rick james]

Would be funny if sky sends bernal to the tour instead of the giro to get the podium sweep

First the Giro (which he will win), then the Tour (to help the old british dudes). Obviously.

Don’t you mean Anglo Saxon dudes

 

[yaco]

Re: Re:

I'm fairly confident that no Sky rider will win the 2019 TDF - Froome is on the decline and can Thomas repeat his form - Strangest thing is this the best TDF profile for a number of years.

We’ve been hearing Froome is on the decline for the last 3 years

Facts are indisputable - His winning margin has been reduced in his last three TDF victories,while the Giro win was a fluke.

 

[Red Rick]

Would hardly call the Giro win a fluke, but there's also no good comparison to that stage.

 

[roundabout]

Re: Re:

I'm fairly confident that no Sky rider will win the 2019 TDF - Froome is on the decline and can Thomas repeat his form - Strangest thing is this the best TDF profile for a number of years.

We’ve been hearing Froome is on the decline for the last 3 years

Facts are indisputable - His winning margin has been reduced in his last three TDF victories,while the Giro win was a fluke.

What an astute observation - the only TDF win after which he did not start another GT with an aim of riding for GC did indeed have the biggest winning margin. Wow.

 

[rick james]

Re: Re:

I'm fairly confident that no Sky rider will win the 2019 TDF - Froome is on the decline and can Thomas repeat his form - Strangest thing is this the best TDF profile for a number of years.

We’ve been hearing Froome is on the decline for the last 3 years

Facts are indisputable - His winning margin has been reduced in his last three TDF victories,while the Giro win was a fluke.

A fluke? Oh my sweet baby Jesus and the baby orphans....a fluke? One of the greatest rides ever in a grand tour is now called a fluke

 

[Bot. Sky_Bot]

Re: Re:

I'm fairly confident that no Sky rider will win the 2019 TDF - Froome is on the decline and can Thomas repeat his form - Strangest thing is this the best TDF profile for a number of years.

We’ve been hearing Froome is on the decline for the last 3 years

Facts are indisputable - His winning margin has been reduced in his last three TDF victories,while the Giro win was a fluke.

19th stage was the best performance since decades. And don't you remember how was he playing with Dumo on the next stage, 20th?

 

[staubsauger]

Re: Re:

I'm fairly confident that no Sky rider will win the 2019 TDF - Froome is on the decline and can Thomas repeat his form - Strangest thing is this the best TDF profile for a number of years.

We’ve been hearing Froome is on the decline for the last 3 years

Facts are indisputable - His winning margin has been reduced in his last three TDF victories,while the Giro win was a fluke.

19th stage was the best performance since decades. And don't you remember how was he playing with Dumo on the next stage, 20th?

Scripted reality, Froome's Giro d'Italia win was scripted reality!

 

[Koronin]

Bot. Sky_Bot, I like your new profile picture more than the previous one.

 

[Gigs_98]

Re: Re:

I'm fairly confident that no Sky rider will win the 2019 TDF - Froome is on the decline and can Thomas repeat his form - Strangest thing is this the best TDF profile for a number of years.

We’ve been hearing Froome is on the decline for the last 3 years

Facts are indisputable - His winning margin has been reduced in his last three TDF victories,while the Giro win was a fluke.

19th stage was the best performance since decades. And don't you remember how was he playing with Dumo on the next stage, 20th?

That's not really an argument though. The only thing we saw that day was that Froome was capable of covering Dumoulin's attacks and anyway if we make a count of the days where one looked stronger than the other it would without a doubt be in Dumoulin's favor. It really only was one day where he was way stronger than Dumo and on that one day he gained more time than Dumoulin on all the days where he was stronger combined.

 

[Bot. Sky_Bot]

Re:

Bot. Sky_Bot, I like your new profile picture more than the previous one.

Ups, the previous one was from Ponferrada'2014 finish line and Kwiatek was in our national colours.
I thought they were more neutral than Sky kits colours.

 

[Bot. Sky_Bot]

Re: Re:

I'm fairly confident that no Sky rider will win the 2019 TDF - Froome is on the decline and can Thomas repeat his form - Strangest thing is this the best TDF profile for a number of years.

We’ve been hearing Froome is on the decline for the last 3 years

Facts are indisputable - His winning margin has been reduced in his last three TDF victories,while the Giro win was a fluke.

19th stage was the best performance since decades. And don't you remember how was he playing with Dumo on the next stage, 20th?

That's not really an argument though. The only thing we saw that day was that Froome was capable of covering Dumoulin's attacks and anyway if we make a count of the days where one looked stronger than the other it would without a doubt be in Dumoulin's favor. It really only was one day where he was way stronger than Dumo and on that one day he gained more time than Dumoulin on all the days where he was stronger combined.

First, there was Zoncolan unforgettable battle between him and Simon: a few km with a few seconds gap, second: Froome's crashes, and finally on 20th stage that's not the point Froome was capable of (...) but he really put Dumo down.

 

[Koronin]

Re: Re:

Bot. Sky_Bot, I like your new profile picture more than the previous one.

Ups, the previous one was from Ponferrada'2014 finish line and Kwiatek was in our national colours.
I thought they were more neutral than Sky kits colours.

I understand. It wasn't a bad photo, just like this one better. Although part of it is likely because blue is my favorite color and the new kits have some blue in them. (Part of why I like Quickstep's kits.)

 

[yaco]

Froome had one good day in the Giro and one fluky/exceptional day - Otherwise it was a below par performance - Which along with his declining winning margins in the TDF suggest he is on the decline - I am content with my opinion.

 

[rick james]

greatest ride ever in a grand tour.....enough said....Froome delivered because he is the show

 

[Velolover2]

Personally, I doubt buy the narrative that Froome is declining. I don't think there is any difference between being 28 or 33. Definitely not today.

Maybe if you starts to peak very early, but that isn't the case with Froome.

 

[Tim Booth]

Re:

According to Kristoff, Aru will lead UAE and be the sole leader - meaning no sprinters.

seems Aru hasn't decided yet.
Fabio Aru non ha ancora deciso su quale Grande Giro puntare nel 2019.
https://cyclingpro.net/spaziociclismo/worldtour/uae-team-emirates-aru-debutta-a-maiorca-e-ammette-il-tour-mi-si-addice-piu-del-giro/
google tranlated
"If at first his participation in the Corsa Rosa seemed in fact obvious, as also confirmed by the statements of some teammates like Alexander Kristoff, to cast doubt on the same was the direct interested, interviewed by RadioCorsa."

 

[yaco]

Re: Re:

According to Kristoff, Aru will lead UAE and be the sole leader - meaning no sprinters.

seems Aru hasn't decided yet.
Fabio Aru non ha ancora deciso su quale Grande Giro puntare nel 2019.
https://cyclingpro.net/spaziociclismo/worldtour/uae-team-emirates-aru-debutta-a-maiorca-e-ammette-il-tour-mi-si-addice-piu-del-giro/
google tranlated
"If at first his participation in the Corsa Rosa seemed in fact obvious, as also confirmed by the statements of some teammates like Alexander Kristoff, to cast doubt on the same was the direct interested, interviewed by RadioCorsa."

Aru would be better focusing on the TDF or the Vuelta - he'll lose too much time in the 3 ITT's to be a serious factor.

 

[Alexandre B.]

Re: Re:

According to Kristoff, Aru will lead UAE and be the sole leader - meaning no sprinters.

seems Aru hasn't decided yet.
Fabio Aru non ha ancora deciso su quale Grande Giro puntare nel 2019.
https://cyclingpro.net/spaziociclismo/worldtour/uae-team-emirates-aru-debutta-a-maiorca-e-ammette-il-tour-mi-si-addice-piu-del-giro/
google tranlated
"If at first his participation in the Corsa Rosa seemed in fact obvious, as also confirmed by the statements of some teammates like Alexander Kristoff, to cast doubt on the same was the direct interested, interviewed by RadioCorsa."

Aru would be better focusing on the TDF or the Vuelta - he'll lose too much time in the 3 ITT's to be a serious factor.

Except his best ride in this year's Giro was the ITT.

 

[Red Rick]

Problem with assessing Froome's riding is very simply that he has absolutely nothing to compare his Finestre performance to. The performance is as rare as it's stage design.

In that regard, it is perhaps smarter to use the Zoncolan stage for comparison, as that was his 2nd best day in the race, and it actually is comparable to other performances as it's pretty much your 40 minute all out W/kg drag race. And in that regard it's probably his best performance in a while too.

But I do think it's easy to misunderstand how riders decline. I think the top level on certain days stays much longer than the day in, day out consistency that is required to win GTs.

Froome still has incredible days of form, but his consistency is getting worse and I think it's hard to deny that. And it's much more likely that will be his undoing as a GT winner than not having his big surges of form.

 

[rick james]

Aye I’m sure you told at the start of last year Froome wouldn’t win another grand tour and ended up winning 2

 

[Red Rick]

Re:

Aye I’m sure you told at the start of last year Froome wouldn’t win another grand tour and ended up winning 2

What better way to engage in discussion than to avoid discussing a point that is made and instead just making up stuff somebody said, no?

 

[Eshnar]

Now it's official:
https://www.teamjumbovisma.com/video/news/roglic-aims-for-pink-jersey-in-giro/