Giro d'Italia 2017 STAGE 20: Pordenone – Asiago 190 km

[Mr.White]

Re:

Dumo apologised for him comments and most importantly he maintains fair play on the bike, a lot more-so than Quintana and Nibali. :lol:

Also it's nice to have people in the sport with opinions once in a while.

Yeah, really strong opinion, such strong that he needed to apologize next morning :lol:

 

[Squire]

So hard to decide who I want to win.

I quite like Quintana and Dumoulin, and Dumo winning would satisfy my wish that GTs should be won by proper GT riders with TT prowess.

Pinot's riding style and panache is great, and it would be cool if he nicked it in front of the drama queens. And Nibali winning would also be awesome, as it'll reinforce his great legacy of always finding a way to win, and he's the most fitting champion of the 100th Giro.

But I need Zakarin to podium, to win me a lot of money.

 

[Oude Geuze]

Dumulin will take the stage and the GC bar any accidents or getting caught in a silly split. He's also by far the most handsome rider which suits the maglia rosa and the Giro in general, an oft overlooked detail imo.

 

[Zinoviev Letter]

It hasn't been a great Giro, but there is every possibility of this Giro having a last two days for the ages.

 

[Red Rick]

The real question is if Landa can overtake Monfort in the GC to prove he's had a more succesful Giro.

 

[LaFlorecita]

The way I see it, tomorrow's stage is perfect to dispatch Dumo, but it is bad for a rider like Pinot who may be looking to gain time on everyone, not just Dumoulin. The final 15km give the group an advantage over the lone rider. So Dumo chasing a group of GC contenders will see him lose more time, while Pinot, Nibali or Zakarin trying to gain time on the group of GC contenders will struggle to make it.
Considering all this, Quintana seems pretty much in the driver's seat. I expect Dumoulin to be at least a solid 2 minutes behind after tomorrow, while the other gaps remain more or less the same (give or take a handful of seconds here and there). I definitely wouldn't bet on Nibali and Pinot gaining 40-50s on Quintana in the final TT.
Of course, I hope I'm very wrong. Ideally, Dumoulin sticks with Quintana and Nibali while Pinot and Zakarin take off and work together to gain time, while the others look at each other it would set things up nicely for Sunday and I'd get a winner I like

 

[Anderis]

Re:

Talking about Cannondale, when will Big Hugh finally step up? Hes been as invisible as he was in last years Vuelta. Disappointing.

He finished with the top guys on Etna so it's small improvement over last year's Vuelta but I agree he has been disappointing. Maybe he doesn't have the recovery to do well in GTs yet. Even in Tour of the Alps he faded on the last stage.

 

[Red Rick]

I've really understimated the Foza climb. It's easily HC in the Tour. If the leaders are split over the top, anything can happen, but it also depends on which breakaway riders are caught when.

And a lot will depend on which GC rider will work with whom.

Pinot was clearly the best climber today.

I think nobody but Dumoulin can be confident about any gaps over 30s in the final TT

 

[SlickMongoose]

Yeah, Carthy said at the Vuelta last year that he found the daily grind incredibly tough, and he was just hanging on to make the time cut by the 2nd week..... It'll take a few years before he gets used to it IMO.

 

[Brullnux]

Re:

The way I see it, tomorrow's stage is perfect to dispatch Dumo, but it is bad for a rider like Pinot who may be looking to gain time on everyone, not just Dumoulin. The final 15km give the group an advantage over the lone rider. So Dumo chasing a group of GC contenders will see him lose more time, while Pinot, Nibali or Zakarin trying to gain time on the group of GC contenders will struggle to make it.
Considering all this, Quintana seems pretty much in the driver's seat. I expect Dumoulin to be at least a solid 2 minutes behind after tomorrow, while the other gaps remain more or less the same (give or take a handful of seconds here and there). I definitely wouldn't bet on Nibali and Pinot gaining 40-50s on Quintana in the final TT.
Of course, I hope I'm very wrong. Ideally, Dumoulin sticks with Quintana and Nibali while Pinot and Zakarin take off and work together to gain time, while the others look at each other it would set things up nicely for Sunday and I'd get a winner I like

If Dumpulin is having a bad day, then how surprising would it be to see Nibali, Quintana and Pinot all happy with the current gaps between them? Quintana looks poor climbing, so could lose a lot in the time trial, but he'll believe he can hold off 40 seconds. Nibali will believe he can take back 40 seconds and hold Pinot off. Pinot will believe he can take back 50 on Nairo and 10 on Nibali. Zaka has to attack, but will he settle for a podium? Probably. So would Pinot, mind.

 

[Tonton]

Re:

The way I see it, tomorrow's stage is perfect to dispatch Dumo, but it is bad for a rider like Pinot who may be looking to gain time on everyone, not just Dumoulin. The final 15km give the group an advantage over the lone rider. So Dumo chasing a group of GC contenders will see him lose more time, while Pinot, Nibali or Zakarin trying to gain time on the group of GC contenders will struggle to make it.
Considering all this, Quintana seems pretty much in the driver's seat. I expect Dumoulin to be at least a solid 2 minutes behind after tomorrow, while the other gaps remain more or less the same (give or take a handful of seconds here and there). I definitely wouldn't bet on Nibali and Pinot gaining 40-50s on Quintana in the final TT.
Of course, I hope I'm very wrong. Ideally, Dumoulin sticks with Quintana and Nibali while Pinot and Zakarin take off and work together to gain time, while the others look at each other it would set things up nicely for Sunday and I'd get a winner I like

Where do I sign?

 

[Rollthedice]

I think anything is possible. The only given is that the doms will have a hellish day. The good news is that it's their last in this giro. The captains though will have another important day left.

 

[Tonton]

Dumoulin to wear his favorite brown briefs, go full gas and asphyxiate the field. His chances are not down the toilet; he's on a roll .

 

[Tricycle Rider]

You guys are just about jinxing every fave rider of yours by having a talk like this.

The only fan who has nothing to lose is Flo! (For obvious reasons.)

 

[Scoondle]

Re:

Dumulin will take the stage and the GC bar any accidents or getting caught in a silly split. He's also by far the most handsome rider which suits the maglia rosa and the Giro in general, an oft overlooked detail imo.

Okay, I can't argue with this.

 

[rehy90]

lets just hope the one trick pony Quintana wont be able to win the giro. Until now he wasnt able to show anything spectacular. Ok, he won the blockhaus stage, but it was not such a surprise and from that stage on, he was not able to show any significant attack. He is just not the complete package rider. I would much rather see Dumoulin or Nibali take it.

 

[LaFlorecita]

Re:

You guys are just about jinxing every fave rider of yours by having a talk like this.

The only fan who has nothing to lose is Flo! (For obvious reasons.)

I'm cheering for Tibo, Zaka and Dumo in this race

 

[jaylew]

Re:

The way I see it, tomorrow's stage is perfect to dispatch Dumo, but it is bad for a rider like Pinot who may be looking to gain time on everyone, not just Dumoulin. The final 15km give the group an advantage over the lone rider. So Dumo chasing a group of GC contenders will see him lose more time, while Pinot, Nibali or Zakarin trying to gain time on the group of GC contenders will struggle to make it.

This all makes sense but leaves out the domestiques. Will there be anyone from a break to drop back to help on that last flat section? Or if it explodes on Grappa, to drop back to work on the flat before the Foza climb? It's going to be fascinating to see which GC guys get riders in the break and how much leash they're allowed. I can't wait to see how it all plays out but we're likely in for some frantic riding that last 15k.

 

[Ataraxus]

Re: Re:

You guys are just about jinxing every fave rider of yours by having a talk like this.

The only fan who has nothing to lose is Flo! (For obvious reasons.)

I'm cheering for Tibo, Zaka and Dumo in this race

I'm cheering for the same but for different reasons

 

[HelloDolly]

Re: Re:

In addition to the actual standings, it is useful to keep a few counterfactual what if scenarios in mind as we head into the last mountainous stage

1. If Thomas and Landa hadn't been eliminated
2. If Poopgate hadn't happened
3. If Fake Pissgate hadn't happened
4. If Quintana hadn't crashed/was in better form
5. If Contador had decided to target the Giro

You forgot to also put:

6. If Kelderman hadn't been taken out by the crash
7. If Yates hadn't crashed

8. If Michele Scarponi was riding

 

[Ataraxus]

Re:

How to crack Big Mouth Tom? It's very simple. Don't give a single km of a free ride.
Movistar should go full gas from the start, put pressure on him. He has to know what is coming
No breakaway due such strong pulls from Movistar
Montegrappa ridden egzactly like Stelvio, very fast. That should be enough but if not then repeat it on the Foza. Game Over.
If that shall come Nairito even doesn't have to attack and may ride TT on road bike

Let Pinot get a 10 seconds gap plus bonifications and let's see who'll ride the TT on road bike better

 

[jaylew]

Re: Re:

In addition to the actual standings, it is useful to keep a few counterfactual what if scenarios in mind as we head into the last mountainous stage

1. If Thomas and Landa hadn't been eliminated
2. If Poopgate hadn't happened
3. If Fake Pissgate hadn't happened
4. If Quintana hadn't crashed/was in better form
5. If Contador had decided to target the Giro

You forgot to also put:

6. If Kelderman hadn't been taken out by the crash
7. If Yates hadn't crashed

8. If Michele Scarponi was riding

9. If there hadn't been a strong headwind on Etna
10. If Kruijswijk had come to the Giro in 2016 shape.

In any case, I'd throw them all out but the 1st one. We're hopefully in for a great finish with so many guys close, but I can't help but wonder where Thomas and Landa would have fit into the mix.

 

[Tonton]

We'll never know. But what an exciting Giro! Two days left, we don't know.The best race in the World. Not the best field maybe, but so much more exciting than the TdF. 2017 has been a great year of cycling so far. Il Giro? So many stories: Gaviria asserting himself as the best sprinter in the World, TJVG from big-time loser to redemption, Rolland finally getting a reward for his aggressive riding, and Landa's fighting spirit, wow!

GC wise, Dumoulin can still win it, break the curse, Nairo and Vicenzo not up to standards but very much in the mix, Tibopino fighting through adversity, wow! And here we stand, two stages left, who knows? Better than a PSM chainsaw massacre for sure.

 

[gregrowlerson]

Very intriguing situation on GC. Will be a very exciting stage, even if it turns out not to be (if that makes any sense).

Why is everyone going on about Pinot, but with very little discussion about Zakarin, and practically no mention at all about Pozzovivo? There is very little separating these three riders in the GC, and Pinot only gained small seconds yesterday, not minutes. Pinot's chances are not really much better than those guys anyway if Tom doesn't crack today. In regards to Pozzovivo; is it possible that he could gain thirty seconds on Nairo in the ITT? Therefore what if he attacks on the final climb today, and the other guys watch each other (especially possible with what has been said between Nibali and Dumoulin)? He would need to gain a minute on Nairo (who isn't looking all that strong), and some seconds on the other riders, plus minutes on Dumoulin obviously (every rider needs to gain AT LEAST one minute on Dumoulin in today's stage).

IF Dumoulin cracks, then it seems to me that Zakarin and Pozzovivo have realistic chances against Quintana, Nibali and Pinot.

And Mollema is still there with a chance.....if he races this stage like another Trek rider

 

[gregrowlerson]

Re: Re:

In addition to the actual standings, it is useful to keep a few counterfactual what if scenarios in mind as we head into the last mountainous stage

1. If Thomas and Landa hadn't been eliminated
2. If Poopgate hadn't happened
3. If Fake Pissgate hadn't happened
4. If Quintana hadn't crashed/was in better form
5. If Contador had decided to target the Giro

You forgot to also put:

6. If Kelderman hadn't been taken out by the crash
7. If Yates hadn't crashed

8. If Michele Scarponi was riding

<3

And 9. If Contador was in the exact same GC position as Mollema right now