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Grand Tour Elimination Game ( 2010s )

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I just like it for the last 50km+ ITT in the Tour tbh. Nah but it had a pretty simple but just solid route.

To be honest I don't think most Vuelta's have been forgettable. I think there's 2018 and maybe 2019, but that's it. 2019 was really good in the 3rd week too with easy mountain stages getting attacks from 2 climbs out and some crazy echelon action as well. Yeah the GC wasn't close but that's the only thing against it really.

Also, the Vuelta basically got really lucky the biggest would-be snorefest of all had Contador retiring and thus taking the piss with agression every single day.

For less hardcore cycling fans than yourself, the Vuelta isn't always necessarily essential viewing. As a more casual viewer, I certainly took a great interest in it in 2016 and 2017 (mainly because of Contador), but I didn't watch too much of it in the last two editions (though each morning I'd wake up - in Australia - and check out the results); I'm not entirely sure why, as it can certainly produce interesting racing. Maybe I didn't see Yates winning as actually making up for what happened at the Giro, or likewise with Roglic. IMO the Vuelta fields usually end up as good as - if not better - than the Giro, but in many cases they are just names....this isn't their best self. And because it is the third GT (not just on the calendar) for many of us, we probably don't have the same level of hopes and possible expectations for it as we do other races. In that sense I would think that very few Vuelta's would get voted out early in this competition, but at the same time it is unlikely that (m)any of them will be left when only a handful remain.
 
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Another factor which might play into how some of the races are perceived are their long term implications.

The 2011 Tour is also the likely catalyst for the infatuation with short mountain stages that has characterised much of the decade, sometimes effectively and sometimes really ineffectively, as well as inspiring a lot of over the top backloading of routes which has created some dull GTs in races not as well raced toward the end than the 2011 Tour was.

Likewise, the 2012 Vuelta featured one of the worst GT routes ever devised, but because of catching lightning in a bottle regarding outside factors (Contador's ban terms, the Tour being heavily TT-biased meaning Rodríguez did the Giro-Vuelta that year, Valverde's mistimed Tour peak, Froome's unfinished business from the year before) meant that the race itself was better than it had any right to be, plus the fact that only the last 90 minutes or so of each stage was broadcast meant the "all MTFs all the time" approach wasn't seen as a problem (even though they missed the most important attack of the entire race as a result). However, the 2012 Vuelta being a success has fundamentally changed the way the Vuelta is drawn up and the way it is raced for the rest of the decade, which may play a role in how it is seen.

Heal: 2010 Tour
Hurt: 2015 Tour
 
There is a fair bit of pro Giro anti Tour sentiment on the forum. Also, as far as 2014 goes, people are forever wondering what might have been (about both races, but more so the Tour).
That’s funny. I’m pro Vuelta more than the Giro. To me the Tour is the Tour. It’s the big one. The other two can’t really compare because it’s just such a carnival. Every cyclist wants to win it. I prefer the style of the Vuelta and the way it is raced. That’s not to take anything away from the Giro. 2017-18 were great races.

To be honest, I just enjoy Grand Tours. Maybe it’s because the Vuelta is the last chance to redeem your season or that it’s the last one I watch every year.
 
That’s funny. I’m pro Vuelta more than the Giro. To me the Tour is the Tour. It’s the big one. The other two can’t really compare because it’s just such a carnival. Every cyclist wants to get a top 10 there. I prefer the style of the Vuelta and the way it is raced. That’s not to take anything away from the Giro. 2017-18 were great races.

To be honest, I just enjoy Grand Tours. Maybe it’s because the Vuelta is the last chance to redeem your season or that it’s the last one I watch every year.
Sorry I had to fix that
 
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