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Giro d'Italia 2020, stage 13: Cervia – Monselice 192 km

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Almeida got 6 bonus seconds so I don't really understand the point. They had every reason to ride.

Agreed. They forced a situation that netted them a nice positive.

As far as Bora go I don't think they made a mistake. They hoped riding the first climb hard to drop Demare would then result in the ability to get over the second climb in touch more easily if the others were hesitant. The reality is that as soon as Ulissi absolutely drilled it from the start the climb was going to be too tough for him no matter what they did. They played their cards as best they could without doing something mad likely gambling on Majka or Konrda supporting and bridging as a group
 
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Exactly, especially as Almeida comes really close to the victory, it was just a matter of centimeters. This shows the team has a lot of trust in him.

If every team who works hard to bring their sprinter/leader in the best possible conditions to a sprint finish, only to finish second on the stage, is seen as gifting the stage to the winner then there are a whole lot of gifts in cycling.
Yes indeed. And he almost won if he could hold Ulissi wheel for one or two seconds rather than go right away with Ulissi. It was a worthy bet and resulted in 6 seconds bonus.
 
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Agreed. They forced a situation that netted them a nice positive.

As far as Bora go I don't think they made a mistake. They hoped riding the first climb hard to drop Demare would then result in the ability to get over the second climb in touch more easily if the others were hesitant. The reality is that as soon as Ulissi absolutely drilled it from the start the climb was going to be too tough for him no matter what they did. They played their cards as best they could without doing something mad likely gambling on Majka or Konrda supporting and bridging as a group
I think Bora probably misplayed their cards by going so hard the first climb only for Demare to come back. You deplete your team and Sagan unnecessarily there.
 
I actually went to check; I was sure Rodriguez had won it at some point, I was right; back in 2012.

Yeah, by one point ahead of Cavendish... He just got stupidly lucky there to win the points competition... That was a weird Giro anyway;) It doesn't disprove my point, in general, though...


Yeah, that was weird, especially the highlighted part, an aberration how Giro normally does it:

Additionally, there was a points classification, which awarded a red jersey. In the points classification, cyclists got points for finishing in the top 15 in a stage. Unlike in the better known points classification in the Tour de France, the type of stage had no effect on what points were on offer – each stage had the same points available on the same scale. The win earned 25 points, second place earned 20 points, third 16, fourth 14, fifth 12, sixth 10, and one point fewer per place down to a single point for 15th. In addition, points could be won in intermediate sprints.[
 
I think Bora probably misplayed their cards by going so hard the first climb only for Demare to come back. You deplete your team and Sagan unnecessarily there.
Hinsight is 10/10. WIthout BORA's acceleration on the first climb, Demare might have been able to be there for the sprint.

It's weird to see Quickstep as the strongest team on the climbs. Just imagine if Evenepoel was here, they could've dominated the race completely. I wonder if they'll go more in the GT direction in the next few years.
 
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Hinsight is 10/10. WIthout BORA's acceleration on the first climb, Demare might have been able to be there for the sprint.

It's weird to see Quickstep as the strongest team on the climbs. Just imagine if Evenepoel was here, they could've dominated the race completely. I wonder if they'll go more in the GT direction in the next few years.
Imagine the team that current pink jersey was supposed to be Evenepoel's lieutenant.
Doubt they will both ride in the same race again after this performance. Patrick to bring in more domestiques.
 
Imagine the team that current pink jersey was supposed to be Evenepoel's lieutenant.
Doubt they will both ride in the same race again after this performance. Patrick to bring in more domestiques.

They really have built a GT team on the sly. Masnada and Ballerini have been excellent signings for the mountains and lumps respectively (plus reduced bunch sprints in the case of DB). Knox is steady and Honoré has really shown himself this Giro.
Perhaps the unthinkable will happen and Quickstep will go to a tour without a sprinter?
And where does the world champion fit into all of this?
Maybe they'll have three GT squads: Remco, Almeida and the stagehunter special with Alaphillipe and Bennett.
 

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