Is Evans going to the Giro next year?

[The Hitch]

I don't get what you mean by that first sentence. Phil has said he wants to work for Cadel at the tour. Those guys developed a close friendship at Lotto. He wants to work for Cadel. It i not about him at the tour and he knows that. He's not risking any of his aims.

Yes he is.

His big aim for the season. What could that be?

Lets see, he has won Amstel Gold twice in a row.

The World Championships will take in parts of the Amstel Gold course.

I guess the TDF will be his main aim for the season then

It wouldnt do him much good to work for Cadel at the Tour .... thats just the price to pay for Cadel's support in the classics.

He wants to win RvV first and foremost, then defend the Ardennes, and a world championship (if he doesnt win this year). Those are his goals. He wants to do it on a team with his friends (Cadel and Thor especially) ... and the price for that is to support Cadel in the Tour.

I personally think he wants to have a bit of a go at GT's in the future, so will ride for Cadel to learn how to do it. Cadel is pretty good at knowing when to conserve, when to go and when to wait ..... something Phil needs to learn in order to do 3 week tours.

Cadels support isnt going to be worth much in RVV and Gilbert doesnt need Evan's support in the Ardennes.

The race where Evan's support would be most important, is the worlds but oh wait, they wont be on the same team.

Likewise Gilberts support wont be worth much in the Tour de France. Cadel cant beat Contador anyway, and if he could, where exactly is Gilbert going to offer any major help?

Instead hes going to hurt himself before the olympics, and the Vuelta comes soon after - (what hes used as preperation before).

When is he supposed to rest?

By far his best option is to rest during the Tour where he has nothing to prove really.

 

[Parrulo]

btw gilbert already said that he wouldn't ride the tour next year anyway because there would be no stages that suit him so . . .

 

[Woody22]

Yes he is.

His big aim for the season. What could that be?

Lets see, he has won Amstel Gold twice in a row.

The World Championships will take in parts of the Amstel Gold course.

I guess the TDF will be his main aim for the season then



Cadels support isnt going to be worth much in RVV and Gilbert doesnt need Evan's support in the Ardennes.

The race where Evan's support would be most important, is the worlds but oh wait, they wont be on the same team.

Likewise Gilberts support wont be worth much in the Tour de France. Cadel cant beat Contador anyway, and if he could, where exactly is Gilbert going to offer any major help?

Instead hes going to hurt himself before the olympics, and the Vuelta comes soon after - (what hes used as preperation before).

When is he supposed to rest?

By far his best option is to rest during the Tour where he has nothing to prove really.

CADEL BEAT CONTADOR AT THIS YEARS TOUR! You don't even know what next years route is and you make that statement. Contador should not even be riding next year, so I think that may give Cadel just a slight chance of beating him.
Yeah I know, Contador did the Giro, he crashed and lost time, etc, etc... Like that has never happened to Evans in the past.

 

[The Hitch]

CADEL BEAT CONTADOR AT THIS YEARS TOUR! You don't even know what next years route is and you make that statement. Contador should not even be riding next year, so I think that may give Cadel just a slight chance of beating him.
Yeah I know, Contador did the Giro, he crashed and lost time, etc, etc... Like that has never happened to Evans in the past.

He did the Giro. He is not going to do the Giro next year.

But even if Contador does get something eliminating him (which is possible) then there are any number of riders who can challenge Evans, and a number who should be able to beat the 35 year old.

This year he only had to face Andy Schleck, everyone else was eliminated one way or another.

I dont see the same happening to all those riders that can beat Cadel next year.

And A Schleck with 1 more year to mature should beat a Cadel with 1 more year added to his age.

 

[Swede1]

CADEL BEAT CONTADOR AT THIS YEARS TOUR! You don't even know what next years route is and you make that statement. Contador should not even be riding next year, so I think that may give Cadel just a slight chance of beating him.
Yeah I know, Contador did the Giro, he crashed and lost time, etc, etc... Like that has never happened to Evans in the past.

Haha really? An in form Contador would have whooped Cadel. Thats fact and everyone on this forum knows that.

 

[Woody22]

He did the Giro. He is not going to do the Giro next year.

But even if Contador does get something eliminating him (which is possible) then there are any number of riders who can challenge Evans, and a number who should be able to beat the 35 year old.

This year he only had to face Andy Schleck, everyone else was eliminated one way or another.

I dont see the same happening to all those riders that can beat Cadel next year.

And A Schleck with 1 more year to mature should beat a Cadel with 1 more year added to his age.

I agree that everything went Evans way in this years Tour. That was part luck and part good riding by himself and his team.

Of the riders who crashed out I find myself wondering how Wiggins would have gone given the way the favourites raced in the mountains and his ability in the TT. That is the only rider I believe could have beated Evans.

Normally I would agree that at 35, a rider is likely to struggle a bit more during a 3 week tour but Evans seems a bit different in that regard. He is showing no signs of age catching up with him, and his move to BMC seems to have giving him a new kick along.

Andy.... I thought this years Tour route was perfect for him, and he nearly pulled it off. I disagree with people who say he is bad at TT, it's just that a few of his rivals are exceptionally good. If he couldn't win with so few TT km this year and a no crash/problem Tour then I don't have as much confidence as you in his ability to win, although three successive 2nd places is very impressive.

Out of interest, do you think any of the riders who crashed out during the Tour would have beaten Evans? And if so, who?

 

[Woody22]

Haha really? An in form Contador would have whooped Cadel. Thats fact and everyone on this forum knows that.

Look, I don't live in dream land. Anyone who follows cycling and has half a brain knows that when it comes to stage racing, and in particular 3 week stage racing, Contador is the best rider in the peloton today by a fair margin.

But Contador and Evans both lined up at the starting line for the 2011 Tour and Evans beat him fair and square. You have to be very good and very lucky to win a 3 week race. Evans was both and Contador was neither (although 5th place is nothing to sneeze at). How Lance managed to win so many in a row without a Tour ending incident is beyond me. That's racing.

I don't accept you statement that an in form Contador would have "whooped" Cadel. An in form Contador would still have been involved in the crashes and an in form Contador would still have lost time in the TTT. And I would argue that an in form Contador would have lost more than 7 seconds to Martin in the ITT, although I do accept that fans of his will probably disagree with me on that.

And I just realised how off topic all this is..... sorry.

 

[goggalor]

And A Schleck with 1 more year to mature should beat a Cadel with 1 more year added to his age.

It depends on the route I think. Evans won on a course that didn't really suit him. If there's two long time trials next year, Andy's ****ed.

Edit: Oh wait, off-topic, sorry. A bit more on-topic: Evans should only consider doing the Giro if the course suits him more than the Tour does. If it doesn't, he's better off going all in for the more prestigious race.

 

[Forunculo]

The key point to me for Cadel win was the quiet pyrennes and the 1 minute of stage 16. Many GC riders were at home for crashes and Contador was glad to survive the first mountain climbs and Schleck overconfidence bring a status quo pro-Evans.

I bet next year Contador will start the fireworks since first big climb unless do that he isn't good form. Since Contador recovery is the best by far, Evans and Schlecks will have problems like they had this year in the Alp d'huez. Andy didn't close the gap at Contador attack when he wasn't a decent level was a shock for me.

A performance like Giro 2011 is unstoppable for Andy and Cadel.

But don't go mad, Cadel was the BEST and DESERVED winner this year.

My thoughts are next year the conditions will be different for Cadel, super team Radioschleck and a competitive bunch of GC riders mano a mano worse than Cadel but all together can lead to a difficult race for Cadel. Don't forget next year Cadel is deffending champion and people gonna follow his wheel.

 

[El Pistolero]

2012 is probably Phils big big chance at getting the biggest win available to him.

Why should he go working for Cadel in the tour, when hes already got a busy Ardennes (+ possibly some Giro as he desperately wants to wear pink) and then a even busier Autumn season ahead of him.

I dont see what much good it would do working for Cadel at the Tour.

Yes its the tour. We get that. So the best riders in the world who have so much more they want to achieve, should risk their major aims simply to ride the Tour?

Gilbert has never shown himself to be that kind of person. Thats one of the great things about him.

That depends. I think on a personal level, Gilbert rates LBL over the Worlds. Unless the Worlds take place in Liége some day. He was once asked what he would choose: 1 win in Flanders and Liége or 2 wins in Liége. He chose the latter. I think that says a lot.

Any link where Gilbert said he desperately wants to wear pink by the way?

 

[roundabout]

Ookay, where does yet another myth that Contador's recovery is the "best by far" come from?

2007 Tour? No, cracked in the final km on the Aubisque and was saved by the tailwind in the TT

2008 Giro? No, cracked as soon as Ricco put the pressure on and was saved by Sella in the penultimate mountain stage and the last stage was ****.

2008 Vuelta? No, Leipheimer handily beat him in the final TT

2009 Tour? No, couldn't get away from Schleck on the stage to Le Grand Bornand despite wheelsucking for the previous 40 minutes.

2010 Tour? Eh, no.

 

[AussieGoddess]

That depends. I think on a personal level, Gilbert rates LBL over the Worlds. Unless the Worlds take place in Liége some day. He was once asked what he would choose: 1 win in Flanders and Liége or 2 wins in Liége. He chose the latter. I think that says a lot.

Any link where Gilbert said he desperately wants to wear pink by the way?

link here

He desperately wanted Liege .... but now wants the worlds, all the classics and a few other things too

 

[El Pistolero]

Ookay, where does yet another myth that Contador's recovery is the "best by far" come from?

2007 Tour? No, cracked in the final km on the Aubisque and was saved by the tailwind in the TT

2008 Giro? No, cracked as soon as Ricco put the pressure on and was saved by Sella in the penultimate mountain stage and the last stage was ****.

2008 Vuelta? No, Leipheimer handily beat him in the final TT

2009 Tour? No, couldn't get away from Schleck on the stage to Le Grand Bornand despite wheelsucking for the previous 40 minutes.

2010 Tour? Eh, no.

2008 Giro: he had no preparation and a crack in his elbow. In the final time trial he was by far the best of the other GC contenders and would have won the time trial if it wasn't for the changing weather conditions.
2008 Vuelta: he only had one bad day in that Vuelta and it was that mountain time trial. He still came second in it.
2009 Tour: again, he won the final time trial beating Cancellara. He gifted away Le Grand Bornand, duh. It's his tactic to make his enemies less hungry.
2010 Tour: not on good form, still won.

 

[jens_attacks]

Ookay, where does yet another myth that Contador's recovery is the "best by far" come from?

2007 Tour? No, cracked in the final km on the Aubisque and was saved by the tailwind in the TT

2008 Giro? No, cracked as soon as Ricco put the pressure on and was saved by Sella in the penultimate mountain stage and the last stage was ****.

2008 Vuelta? No, Leipheimer handily beat him in the final TT

2009 Tour? No, couldn't get away from Schleck on the stage to Le Grand Bornand despite wheelsucking for the previous 40 minutes.

2010 Tour? Eh, no.

lol=)))))))))))))))))and still won every damn thing.that shows you how cool is contador

 

[Moncoutie]

Look, I don't live in dream land. Anyone who follows cycling and has half a brain knows that when it comes to stage racing, and in particular 3 week stage racing, Contador is the best rider in the peloton today by a fair margin.

But Contador and Evans both lined up at the starting line for the 2011 Tour and Evans beat him fair and square. You have to be very good and very lucky to win a 3 week race. Evans was both and Contador was neither (although 5th place is nothing to sneeze at). How Lance managed to win so many in a row without a Tour ending incident is beyond me. That's racing.

I don't accept you statement that an in form Contador would have "whooped" Cadel. An in form Contador would still have been involved in the crashes and an in form Contador would still have lost time in the TTT. And I would argue that an in form Contador would have lost more than 7 seconds to Martin in the ITT, although I do accept that fans of his will probably disagree with me on that.

And I just realised how off topic all this is..... sorry.

Lot of truth there.

 

[The Hitch]

Look, I don't live in dream land. Anyone who follows cycling and has half a brain knows that when it comes to stage racing, and in particular 3 week stage racing, Contador is the best rider in the peloton today by a fair margin.

But Contador and Evans both lined up at the starting line for the 2011 Tour and Evans beat him fair and square. You have to be very good and very lucky to win a 3 week race. Evans was both and Contador was neither (although 5th place is nothing to sneeze at). How Lance managed to win so many in a row without a Tour ending incident is beyond me. That's racing.

I don't accept you statement that an in form Contador would have "whooped" Cadel. An in form Contador would still have been involved in the crashes and an in form Contador would still have lost time in the TTT. And I would argue that an in form Contador would have lost more than 7 seconds to Martin in the ITT, although I do accept that fans of his will probably disagree with me on that.

And I just realised how off topic all this is..... sorry.

Jurgen, Ivan, Samuel and Alberto all could have caused Evans huge problems in the mountains. Instead it was just Evans vs Schleck.

And no I dont think Evans could beat an on form Contador in a time trial. Contador is the only person to beat a on form Cancellara in an itt.

Over the last few years hes been winning and owning tts time and time again.

Even in the giro he rode the Giro tt as a celebration and came 3rd.

Any link where Gilbert said he desperately wants to wear pink by the way?

In a lenghty interview with him in a UK cycling magazine (forget the name but its the major one).

 

[cineteq]

I don't accept you statement that an in form Contador would have "whooped" Cadel. An in form Contador would still have been involved in the crashes and an in form Contador would still have lost time in the TTT. And I would argue that an in form Contador would have lost more than 7 seconds to Martin in the ITT, although I do accept that fans of his will probably disagree with me on that.

Contador's latest ITTs are good but not great. Evans would have won the ITT for GCers, but perhaps not the race.

 

[Timmy-loves-Rabo]

I don't accept you statement that an in form Contador would have "whooped" Cadel. An in form Contador would still have been involved in the crashes and an in form Contador would still have lost time in the TTT. And I would argue that an in form Contador would have lost more than 7 seconds to Martin in the ITT, although I do accept that fans of his will probably disagree with me on that.

and in the mountains? Where cadel has never been a match for ac?

the day evans climbs like this , come talk to me.

 

[goggalor]

Jurgen, Ivan, Samuel and Alberto all could have caused Evans huge problems in the mountains. Instead it was just Evans vs Schleck.

Sanchez did cause Evans trouble, but in the end he cracked on the Galibier. Exactly the same with Contador. I don't know what you mean by "could have" in regards to these two. I don't think VDB would've done anything spectacular, Basso maybe, but even without the Etna crash he'd still lose time into Gap and in the time trial.

The others who crashed out might've challenged Fränk for the last podium place, but that's it. Normally I'd rate Gesink higher than that, but he's struggled to reach his potential in the high mountains this year.

Either way, none of these riders could challenge Andy in the previous two editions.

 

[movingtarget]

He did the Giro. He is not going to do the Giro next year.

But even if Contador does get something eliminating him (which is possible) then there are any number of riders who can challenge Evans, and a number who should be able to beat the 35 year old.

This year he only had to face Andy Schleck, everyone else was eliminated one way or another.

I dont see the same happening to all those riders that can beat Cadel next year.

And A Schleck with 1 more year to mature should beat a Cadel with 1 more year added to his age.

Has Andy Schleck improved his descending or his TT in the last 12 months ? We keep hearing that Schleck or his brother are going to win a grand tour but it has not happened yet. With Frank it never will. Evans had luck on his side for a change. What makes you think Evans will lose so much in 12 months while Schleck will improve that much. Schleck was closer to winning the TDF last year and has not done anything this year to indicate he is ready to breakthrough for the win. He and his brother tried different methods to beat Evans but could not manage it. Duel attacks, long range attacks etc and the reality is neither was as solid over three weeks as Evans. Evans could have even won the final TT and put more time into Schelck but his DS refused to give him tthe time checks in the last few kms as they were worried he might crash if they knew how close he was to winning the stage. None of the riders who finished in the top ten had any excuses except for Contador who was often poorly positioned in the bunch for a GC rider and who did not seem to be getting much support from his team when he did get in trouble. It was almost like Contador was riding for another team.

 

[Bustedknuckle]

I doubt it, Evans has always been a rider obsessed with le tour.

But now he has won the TdF..My bet is that he wants to add a pink jersey to his wall. Hope so, even better on a Italian team altho that ain't gonna happen.

 

[El Pistolero]

Basso will win next year anyway.

 

[Forunculo]

Ookay, where does yet another myth that Contador's recovery is the "best by far" come from?

2007 Tour? No, cracked in the final km on the Aubisque and was saved by the tailwind in the TT

2008 Giro? No, cracked as soon as Ricco put the pressure on and was saved by Sella in the penultimate mountain stage and the last stage was ****.

2008 Vuelta? No, Leipheimer handily beat him in the final TT

2009 Tour? No, couldn't get away from Schleck on the stage to Le Grand Bornand despite wheelsucking for the previous 40 minutes.

2010 Tour? Eh, no.

He won all this GT, but I was thinking about this year. He was fresh at last stage of the Giro and if he didn't lost time first day and didn't crash the knee it's plausible he had compite for the win with Cadel and Andy.


Seein the recovery level of Anton, JRod, Nibali and Scarponi with two month more to rest and the weaker field and still doing very worst is a hint of who recover best by far.

 

[goggalor]

But now he has won the TdF..My bet is that he wants to add a pink jersey to his wall. Hope so, even better on a Italian team altho that ain't gonna happen.

I don't think he was obsessed with the Tour before, but I fear he is now. I just hope that doesn't mean he'll skip the classics and other stage races. The reason I like Evans as a rider is that he races a lot and almost always to win.

 

[movingtarget]

I don't think he was obsessed with the Tour before, but I fear he is now. I just hope that doesn't mean he'll skip the classics and other stage races. The reason I like Evans as a rider is that he races a lot and almost always to win.

He has always been obssessed with winning the Tour as he admitted in interviews. It's the biggest race in the world and the one he really wanted to win. Of course he wants to defend his title but as you said, he will still try and win other races as well, unlike others who just target the TDF. He only raced the Giro in 2010 to try and get his team an invitation to the TDF as BMC were no certainty to be invited.