This races seems to be down to Yates v Valverde, I think Valverde will take the Red Jersey by a small margin in the TT, and then stages 17,19 and 20 will decide which of the 2 wins the race!
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Velolover2 said:To be fair, I think Yates and Valverde are pretty equal in a lumpy, long-ish TT. I don't think Yates will lose the jersey. Valverde might gain 10 or 15 secs on him max. But the reverse scenario is possible too.
Yates has improved much and will have Valverde's time to chase. I'd except them both to finish in top 10. Kruijswijk is likely to jump ahead of both Lopez AND Quintana for the third spot.
Yeah, let's see how it goes. Valverde has the size advantage (2.5 inches taller/5 pounds heavier). I'd favor Valverde on those 3-4% hills.Koronin said:Velolover2 said:To be fair, I think Yates and Valverde are pretty equal in a lumpy, long-ish TT. I don't think Yates will lose the jersey. Valverde might gain 10 or 15 secs on him max. But the reverse scenario is possible too.
Yates has improved much and will have Valverde's time to chase. I'd except them both to finish in top 10. Kruijswijk is likely to jump ahead of both Lopez AND Quintana for the third spot.
I think a lot with this ITT is going to depend on how much Valverde is willing to risk on the corners. He's said he gave up time (possibly up to 10 seconds) on the opening TT because he was being extremely cautious in the corners.
Rollthedice said:He should take red on Tuesday and if he doesn't have a bad day, which happens rarely but happens, I think only stage 20 can upset him. Obviously Movistar has to ride for him from Tuesday on.
Koronin said:Velolover2 said:To be fair, I think Yates and Valverde are pretty equal in a lumpy, long-ish TT. I don't think Yates will lose the jersey. Valverde might gain 10 or 15 secs on him max. But the reverse scenario is possible too.
Yates has improved much and will have Valverde's time to chase. I'd except them both to finish in top 10. Kruijswijk is likely to jump ahead of both Lopez AND Quintana for the third spot.
I think a lot with this ITT is going to depend on how much Valverde is willing to risk on the corners. He's said he gave up time (possibly up to 10 seconds) on the opening TT because he was being extremely cautious in the corners.
Velolover2 said:To be fair, I think Yates and Valverde are pretty equal in a lumpy, long-ish TT. I don't think Yates will lose the jersey. Valverde might gain 10 or 15 secs on him max. But the reverse scenario is possible too.
Yates has improved much and will have Valverde's time to chase. I'd except them both to finish in top 10. Kruijswijk is likely to jump ahead of both Lopez AND Quintana for the third spot.
Yeah, Quintana waved a couple of times at Valverde during the ascent. Somehow he is expecting him to do everything and Valverde is obviously still outclassing Quintana in the end of the stages anyways. Its a very weird dynamic. One specific danish commentator is probably still 100% sure that its all about Quintana and that Valverde is still a domestique, its amazing that people can't see that Valverde at least should be co-captain. Its not as blatant as 2017 (even though Valverde rode half a stage, he would have been significantly stronger - EVERYTHING points at that direction, but Quintana was the designated leader, at least on the outside). Tour de France 2016 is also a good example where they were equally strong.Blanco said:Rollthedice said:He should take red on Tuesday and if he doesn't have a bad day, which happens rarely but happens, I think only stage 20 can upset him. Obviously Movistar has to ride for him from Tuesday on.
And I think they will, after reading their statement from the site. They're full of praise for Valverde's ride, and Quintana is barely mentioned.
I think both Valverde and Unzue are pissed because Quintana didn't want to work in the last 1.5 km for Valverde, and especially on that downhill part, so he could out sprint Yates and take the bonus.
Valv.Piti said:Yeah, Quintana waved a couple of times at Valverde during the ascent. Somehow he is expecting him to do everything and Valverde is obviously still outclassing Quintana in the end of the stages anyways. Its a very weird dynamic. One specific danish commentator is probably still 100% sure that its all about Quintana and that Valverde is still a domestique, its amazing that people can't see that Valverde at least should be co-captain. Its not as blatant as 2017 (even though Valverde rode half a stage, he would have been significantly stronger - EVERYTHING points at that direction, but Quintana was the designated leader, at least on the outside). Tour de France 2016 is also a good example where they were equally strong.Blanco said:Rollthedice said:He should take red on Tuesday and if he doesn't have a bad day, which happens rarely but happens, I think only stage 20 can upset him. Obviously Movistar has to ride for him from Tuesday on.
And I think they will, after reading their statement from the site. They're full of praise for Valverde's ride, and Quintana is barely mentioned.
I think both Valverde and Unzue are pissed because Quintana didn't want to work in the last 1.5 km for Valverde, and especially on that downhill part, so he could out sprint Yates and take the bonus.
Valv.Piti said:"The red jersey is not an aspiration ‘per se’, though I’m feeling strong and close to the top guys. Tuesday’s route shouldn’t be bad for me; hopefully I can have a good day. I still think it will be tough for anyone to make a real gap in the GC to win this one.”
Yep, the red jersey is a huge aspiration and if/when he gets it, he will do everything in his might to keep it. Vamos Alejandro!
Valv.Piti said:"The red jersey is not an aspiration ‘per se’, though I’m feeling strong and close to the top guys. Tuesday’s route shouldn’t be bad for me; hopefully I can have a good day. I still think it will be tough for anyone to make a real gap in the GC to win this one.”
Yep, the red jersey is a huge aspiration and if/when he gets it, he will do everything in his might to keep it. Vamos Alejandro!
Robert5091 said:Valv.Piti said:"The red jersey is not an aspiration ‘per se’, though I’m feeling strong and close to the top guys. Tuesday’s route shouldn’t be bad for me; hopefully I can have a good day. I still think it will be tough for anyone to make a real gap in the GC to win this one.”
Yep, the red jersey is a huge aspiration and if/when he gets it, he will do everything in his might to keep it. Vamos Alejandro!
Someone else not planning on winning?!
lartiste said:Robert5091 said:Valv.Piti said:"The red jersey is not an aspiration ‘per se’, though I’m feeling strong and close to the top guys. Tuesday’s route shouldn’t be bad for me; hopefully I can have a good day. I still think it will be tough for anyone to make a real gap in the GC to win this one.”
Yep, the red jersey is a huge aspiration and if/when he gets it, he will do everything in his might to keep it. Vamos Alejandro!
Someone else not planning on winning?!
Overall win is lying on the street, who ever will come and take it will win, hopefully Bala will be the first! But eventhough it will be not simple for him, this would be great finale of his career.
Rollthedice said:lartiste said:Robert5091 said:Valv.Piti said:"The red jersey is not an aspiration ‘per se’, though I’m feeling strong and close to the top guys. Tuesday’s route shouldn’t be bad for me; hopefully I can have a good day. I still think it will be tough for anyone to make a real gap in the GC to win this one.”
Yep, the red jersey is a huge aspiration and if/when he gets it, he will do everything in his might to keep it. Vamos Alejandro!
Someone else not planning on winning?!
Overall win is lying on the street, who ever will come and take it will win, hopefully Bala will be the first! But eventhough it will be not simple for him, this would be great finale of his career.
Finale? Maybe, just maybe Tokyo Olympics.
Amazinmets87 said:Assuming Bala grabs red what tactics can we expect from Movistar? Sending Quintana up the road early and forcing GC men to mark him while Bala sits on wheels seems a good plan of action. With a high placed GC wild card to play Valverde shouldn't have his nose in the wind for a second on finishing climbs.
Koronin said:Amazinmets87 said:Assuming Bala grabs red what tactics can we expect from Movistar? Sending Quintana up the road early and forcing GC men to mark him while Bala sits on wheels seems a good plan of action. With a high placed GC wild card to play Valverde shouldn't have his nose in the wind for a second on finishing climbs.
Great question. If Bala takes red, his best defense is to just sit in wheels. The only rider he will likely need to worry about will be Yates due to what the time gaps most likely will be.
Amazinmets87 said:Assuming Bala grabs red what tactics can we expect from Movistar? Sending Quintana up the road early and forcing GC men to mark him while Bala sits on wheels seems a good plan of action. With a high placed GC wild card to play Valverde shouldn't have his nose in the wind for a second on finishing climbs.
1. There are many different scenario's if Valverde takes red, in regards to gap size, how close Quintana is and how close Yates and MAL are.Amazinmets87 said:Koronin said:Amazinmets87 said:Assuming Bala grabs red what tactics can we expect from Movistar? Sending Quintana up the road early and forcing GC men to mark him while Bala sits on wheels seems a good plan of action. With a high placed GC wild card to play Valverde shouldn't have his nose in the wind for a second on finishing climbs.
Great question. If Bala takes red, his best defense is to just sit in wheels. The only rider he will likely need to worry about will be Yates due to what the time gaps most likely will be.
Yup. I think Quintana performing well in the ITT is pivotal. He has to be close in order to force GC rivals to mark his attacks.
The only way this backfires is if Yates drops Valverde in pursuit of Quintana. In this case I suppose the plan would be for Quintana to wait and work with Valverde.