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Teams & Riders He's coming home!!!! Alejandro Valverde comeback thread.

Page 149 - Get up to date with the latest news, scores & standings from the Cycling News Community.

What will Valverde's impact be the cycling world in 2012

  • Nuclear Holocoust

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Aug 16, 2013
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He's a big threat. Especially with this soft route.

All depends on Froome really. If he's able to drop his rivals on La Planche, we'll should start looking to the Vuelta already.

If not, the race is on.
 
Re:

Arredondo said:
He's a big threat. Especially with this soft route.

All depends on Froome really. If he's able to drop his rivals on La Planche, we'll should start looking to the Vuelta already.

If not, the race is on.
Very much doubt he will drop Porte, but still woudln't be surprised. However, its a perfect climb for a good Don Alejandro, maybe not nearly as hard as Froome would like it to be. Would pay a bit to see him win there and get the Maillot Jaune. :cool:
 
Mar 13, 2015
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Valv.Piti said:
Arredondo said:
He's a big threat. Especially with this soft route.

All depends on Froome really. If he's able to drop his rivals on La Planche, we'll should start looking to the Vuelta already.

If not, the race is on.
Very much doubt he will drop Porte, but still woudln't be surprised. However, its a perfect climb for a good Don Alejandro, maybe not nearly as hard as Froome would like it to be. Would pay a bit to see him win there and get the Maillot Jaune. :cool:

If the Don wins on Planche, which is not impossible at all, he's the main threat for Froome. I said it earlier, it's the crucial stage, which will determine the course of the race. If Froome wins by dropping them all, it's game over. If they finish together it's wide open...
 
Aug 6, 2015
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Re: Re:

Valv.Piti said:
Arredondo said:
He's a big threat. Especially with this soft route.

All depends on Froome really. If he's able to drop his rivals on La Planche, we'll should start looking to the Vuelta already.

If not, the race is on.
Very much doubt he will drop Porte, but still woudln't be surprised. However, its a perfect climb for a good Don Alejandro, maybe not nearly as hard as Froome would like it to be. Would pay a bit to see him win there and get the Maillot Jaune. :cool:
Planche des belles filles doesn't suit perfectly to valverde. Those 20% gradients will kill him. He is always dropped in this type of climbs in vuelta.
 
Re: Re:

portugal11 said:
Valv.Piti said:
Arredondo said:
He's a big threat. Especially with this soft route.

All depends on Froome really. If he's able to drop his rivals on La Planche, we'll should start looking to the Vuelta already.

If not, the race is on.
Very much doubt he will drop Porte, but still woudln't be surprised. However, its a perfect climb for a good Don Alejandro, maybe not nearly as hard as Froome would like it to be. Would pay a bit to see him win there and get the Maillot Jaune. :cool:
Planche des belles filles doesn't suit perfectly to valverde. Those 20% gradients will kill him. He is always dropped in this type of climbs in vuelta.
Isn't the only 20% gradient about 250m from the finish? He should be fine there if he's sprinting by then. And, if he is dropped at that point, it's hardly going to be a disaster. Apart from that the max is only about 12% or 13% I think at any point.
 
Mar 13, 2015
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Rollthedice said:
None of the main contenders should loose more than 20 sec to the winner on PdBF so I don't see how the race is decided there, be it Dawg who wins.

Not literally decided, but if Froome doesn't win, and he'll try for sure, I think it's going to be hard mental blow to him. In all previous times when he won, he took advantage early on and then his team guided him safely through majority of the stages. In the 3rd week he's vulnerable and I don't think he would want to wait for the Galibier and Izoard to win the race. I wouldn't bet on him if he does. He usually has couple of stages red circled and I think Planche is the first one. Stage 12 in Pyrenees might be another one. Jura stage is probably harder than both, but Mont du Chat is 25km from the finish. So I think Froome will go all out in stages 5 and 12, and if someone survives that without damage (being dropped), he's in prime position imo.
 
Mar 13, 2015
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Re: Re:

portugal11 said:
Valv.Piti said:
Arredondo said:
He's a big threat. Especially with this soft route.

All depends on Froome really. If he's able to drop his rivals on La Planche, we'll should start looking to the Vuelta already.

If not, the race is on.
Very much doubt he will drop Porte, but still woudln't be surprised. However, its a perfect climb for a good Don Alejandro, maybe not nearly as hard as Froome would like it to be. Would pay a bit to see him win there and get the Maillot Jaune. :cool:
Planche des belles filles doesn't suit perfectly to valverde. Those 20% gradients will kill him. He is always dropped in this type of climbs in vuelta.

Cumbres Verdes in Vuelta 2014 was a climb of similar length and gradient...
 
Aug 6, 2015
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Re: Re:

Mr.White said:
portugal11 said:
Valv.Piti said:
Arredondo said:
He's a big threat. Especially with this soft route.

All depends on Froome really. If he's able to drop his rivals on La Planche, we'll should start looking to the Vuelta already.

If not, the race is on.
Very much doubt he will drop Porte, but still woudln't be surprised. However, its a perfect climb for a good Don Alejandro, maybe not nearly as hard as Froome would like it to be. Would pay a bit to see him win there and get the Maillot Jaune. :cool:
Planche des belles filles doesn't suit perfectly to valverde. Those 20% gradients will kill him. He is always dropped in this type of climbs in vuelta.

Cumbres Verdes in Vuelta 2014 was a climb of similar length and gradient...
He was really strong there but I can tell you 5 climbs similars to PDBF that valverde lost time. Valverde always performs better in spain than france.
 
Re: Re:

portugal11 said:
Mr.White said:
portugal11 said:
Valv.Piti said:
Arredondo said:
He's a big threat. Especially with this soft route.

All depends on Froome really. If he's able to drop his rivals on La Planche, we'll should start looking to the Vuelta already.

If not, the race is on.
Very much doubt he will drop Porte, but still woudln't be surprised. However, its a perfect climb for a good Don Alejandro, maybe not nearly as hard as Froome would like it to be. Would pay a bit to see him win there and get the Maillot Jaune. :cool:

Planche des belles filles doesn't suit perfectly to valverde. Those 20% gradients will kill him. He is always dropped in this type of climbs in vuelta.

Cumbres Verdes in Vuelta 2014 was a climb of similar length and gradient...
He was really strong there but I can tell you 5 climbs similars to PDBF that valverde lost time. Valverde always performs better in spain than france.

What are you talking about? Valverde is one of the best riders on shorter 10-20% climbs like Mirador de Ézaro and Mur de Huy.

Do you mean longer climbs?
 
Re: Re:

WheelofGear said:
What are you talking about? Valverde is one of the best riders on shorter 10-20% climbs like Mirador de Ézaro and Mur de Huy.

Do you mean longer climbs?
PDBF - 6km @ 8.5%
Mur de Huy - 1.3km @ 9.6%
Ezaro - 1.8km @ 14%

PDBF is quite a different climb - a much longer effort.
Ezaro is quite a bit steeper than Huy and longer, and for such a steep climb those 500m matter. I would say Huy is a much better climb for Valverde than Ezaro. Purito was always the better rider for those extremely steep gradients.
This doesn't mean PDBF isn't a good climb for Valverde, compared to big cols it is great for him, but not that similar to Huy.
 
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All depends on Froome really. If he's able to drop his rivals on La Planche, we'll should start looking to the Vuelta already.

If not, the race is on.[/quote]
Very much doubt he will drop Porte, but still woudln't be surprised. However, its a perfect climb for a good Don Alejandro, maybe not nearly as hard as Froome would like it to be. Would pay a bit to see him win there and get the Maillot Jaune. :cool:[/quote]

Planche des belles filles doesn't suit perfectly to valverde. Those 20% gradients will kill him. He is always dropped in this type of climbs in vuelta.[/quote]

Cumbres Verdes in Vuelta 2014 was a climb of similar length and gradient...[/quote]
He was really strong there but I can tell you 5 climbs similars to PDBF that valverde lost time. Valverde always performs better in spain than france.[/quote]

What are you talking about? Valverde is one of the best riders on shorter 10-20% climbs like Mirador de Ézaro and Mur de Huy.

Do you mean longer climbs?[/quote]
i'm talking about 5 km climbs with gradients above 20%...
 
For what it is worth, Valverde lost 20 seconds to Nibali on LPdBF in 2014. Only person who did better versus Nibali on the climb was Pinot at 15 seconds. I think it is fair to say that the Valverde we have seen thus far in 2017 is stronger than the 2014 Tour Valverde, but that does not necessarily mean that the Valverde we have seen thus far this year will be the same one we see at the Tour. Personally, I think his improved performances in the Tour from 2014 to 2016 (taking into consideration he already had a Giro in his legs in 2016) suggest that he will be better able to handle the climb this year than he was in 2014, but we will know more soon enough.
 
Re: Re:

Mr.White said:
Rollthedice said:
None of the main contenders should loose more than 20 sec to the winner on PdBF so I don't see how the race is decided there, be it Dawg who wins.

Not literally decided, but if Froome doesn't win, and he'll try for sure, I think it's going to be hard mental blow to him. In all previous times when he won, he took advantage early on and then his team guided him safely through majority of the stages. In the 3rd week he's vulnerable and I don't think he would want to wait for the Galibier and Izoard to win the race. I wouldn't bet on him if he does. He usually has couple of stages red circled and I think Planche is the first one. Stage 12 in Pyrenees might be another one. Jura stage is probably harder than both, but Mont du Chat is 25km from the finish. So I think Froome will go all out in stages 5 and 12, and if someone survives that without damage (being dropped), he's in prime position imo.


why is that? because he was ill in the 3rd week one year of this race, we have no proof he will be vulnerable in the 3rd week
 
Mar 13, 2015
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Re: Re:

rick james said:
Mr.White said:
Rollthedice said:
None of the main contenders should loose more than 20 sec to the winner on PdBF so I don't see how the race is decided there, be it Dawg who wins.

Not literally decided, but if Froome doesn't win, and he'll try for sure, I think it's going to be hard mental blow to him. In all previous times when he won, he took advantage early on and then his team guided him safely through majority of the stages. In the 3rd week he's vulnerable and I don't think he would want to wait for the Galibier and Izoard to win the race. I wouldn't bet on him if he does. He usually has couple of stages red circled and I think Planche is the first one. Stage 12 in Pyrenees might be another one. Jura stage is probably harder than both, but Mont du Chat is 25km from the finish. So I think Froome will go all out in stages 5 and 12, and if someone survives that without damage (being dropped), he's in prime position imo.


why is that? because he was ill in the 3rd week one year of this race, we have no proof he will be vulnerable in the 3rd week

Well he lost time twice in the 3rd week, 2013 and 2015, so I would take that as a indicator that he's not firing on all cylinders at that particular part of the race, if you don't mind... :rolleyes:
 
Re: Re:

Mr.White said:
rick james said:
Mr.White said:
Rollthedice said:
None of the main contenders should loose more than 20 sec to the winner on PdBF so I don't see how the race is decided there, be it Dawg who wins.

Not literally decided, but if Froome doesn't win, and he'll try for sure, I think it's going to be hard mental blow to him. In all previous times when he won, he took advantage early on and then his team guided him safely through majority of the stages. In the 3rd week he's vulnerable and I don't think he would want to wait for the Galibier and Izoard to win the race. I wouldn't bet on him if he does. He usually has couple of stages red circled and I think Planche is the first one. Stage 12 in Pyrenees might be another one. Jura stage is probably harder than both, but Mont du Chat is 25km from the finish. So I think Froome will go all out in stages 5 and 12, and if someone survives that without damage (being dropped), he's in prime position imo.


why is that? because he was ill in the 3rd week one year of this race, we have no proof he will be vulnerable in the 3rd week

Well he lost time twice in the 3rd week, 2013 and 2015, so I would take that as a indicator that he's not firing on all cylinders at that particular part of the race, if you don't mind... :rolleyes:

I think you have the years wrong, there. 2013 he lost 10 minutes by puncturing during echelons
2015 he finished on the podium, even finished with Froome on Alpe d'Huez

You may be thinking of 2014 when he crumbled in the last week. According to him due to family problems that meant he supposedly wasn't motivated that year
 
Not really a third week thing with Valverde. More of a jour sans issue. He's said he struggles with altitude, so that might be a part of the puzzle.

Anyway, this route could potentially suit him, particularly those first two weeks. There's a (unlikely) scenario where an early race lead here proves too hard to surmount for his rivals. But he might be thinking of stages here and GC at the Vuelta. We'll see.
 
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ice&fire said:
Probably the closest climb to PDBF where Valverde has won is this:

https://youtu.be/-TA6YtiWB-c?t=23m30s

LaFlo won't like it

La Gallina is longer and little less steep. I think Cumbres Verdes and Pena Cabarga are more similar. Cumbres Verdes is little shorter but similar gradient, while Pena Cabarga is similar length but steeper, especially because of that flatter part in the middle.
 
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Re: Re:

GuyIncognito said:
Mr.White said:
rick james said:
Mr.White said:
Rollthedice said:
None of the main contenders should loose more than 20 sec to the winner on PdBF so I don't see how the race is decided there, be it Dawg who wins.

Not literally decided, but if Froome doesn't win, and he'll try for sure, I think it's going to be hard mental blow to him. In all previous times when he won, he took advantage early on and then his team guided him safely through majority of the stages. In the 3rd week he's vulnerable and I don't think he would want to wait for the Galibier and Izoard to win the race. I wouldn't bet on him if he does. He usually has couple of stages red circled and I think Planche is the first one. Stage 12 in Pyrenees might be another one. Jura stage is probably harder than both, but Mont du Chat is 25km from the finish. So I think Froome will go all out in stages 5 and 12, and if someone survives that without damage (being dropped), he's in prime position imo.


why is that? because he was ill in the 3rd week one year of this race, we have no proof he will be vulnerable in the 3rd week

Well he lost time twice in the 3rd week, 2013 and 2015, so I would take that as a indicator that he's not firing on all cylinders at that particular part of the race, if you don't mind... :rolleyes:

I think you have the years wrong, there. 2013 he lost 10 minutes by puncturing during echelons
2015 he finished on the podium, even finished with Froome on Alpe d'Huez

You may be thinking of 2014 when he crumbled in the last week. According to him due to family problems that meant he supposedly wasn't motivated that year

No, no. I was talking about Froome...
 

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