Juan Ayuso discussion thread

[pastronef]

And: if you hate someone too much you end up becoming their fan. (Wang Ye in I am Nobody)

yes. I'm a Froome fan, but his dearest haters on here and twitter follow/followed him very much closer than me. reading EVERY piece, checking every photograph, stalking every move in and out of the races

 

[noob]

yes. I'm a Froome fan, but his dearest haters on here and twitter follow/followed him very much closer than me. reading EVERY piece, checking every photograph, stalking every move in and out of the races

Yup I remember your story about how you became his fan. I myself hated on; Roglic, Almeida, Remco, Wout. Still on the fence with MvdP.
And now Ayuso. I cherish my hatred so it makes me bummed that Gianetti looks so amicable.

 

[Red Rick]

Does he even have fans? Fans of him, not Pogacar haters.

He does now. Even if I am the Juan and Onley

 

[Gratemans]

A rider getting hate will make some of us like him! Fan behaviour very often shapes how we see a rider. If a rider is loved he will get hate. If a rider is hated he will get love.

And: if you hate someone too much you end up becoming their fan. (Wang Ye in I am Nobody)

Ah, so that's how I ended up cheering for Valverde when he became WC

 

[SafeBet]

Does he even have fans? Fans of him, not Pogacar haters.

Big fan here after his Giro debacle. I always cheer for riders who are struggling for whatever reason.

 

[noob]

They promised Almeida he'd be the team leader if Pogacar didn't go, and now they're bringing in Ayuso as co-leader.

It's becoming increasingly clear to me that the news about the team's departure was a pressure tactic from Ayuso to get him to the Vuelta.

It's true that UAE doesn't want his young
riders to do two GTs in the same year, so as not to burn them out for the future. Suddenly, they don't see him as any less young.

It's been blackmail.

This guy leaks everything to the same two journalists.

This time, he didn't even respect Pogacar's desire to communicate his decision.

He should be more careful about these things and respect his teammates. Pogacar said the other day that he would communicate his decision. Ayuso's entourage has been doing it for days.

Will they still be saying that this guy is mistreated by his team? He gets opportunities every year. The one who should be upset is Almeida.

Or it might just be vuelta themselves that wants the currently (probably) best Spanish rider in the Spanish race.

 

[staubsauger]

Or it might just be vuelta themselves that wants the currently (probably) best Spanish rider in the Spanish race.

Has Ayuso even trained properly for the Vuelta a Espana or has he been a livewurst the past few weeks?

Of course in theory Ayuso is much more likely to beat Vingegaard than Almeida and should be captain over the Portuguese. In practice however Ayuso hasn't gotten his act together, is about to hit Evgeni Berzin territory and Almeida is the much safer bet to archive a podium spot at the 2025 Vuelta a Espana!

I'm not convinced at all Ayuso has been determined in his preparation to be ready to perform at his best at the Vuelta a Espana. Meanwhile Almeida has shown great fighting spirit at the Tour de Suisse and earned his time to shine in Spain.

 

[Eddy Evenepoel]

Ayoso to try and follow Vingegaards attacks, while Almeida is yo-yoing behind and comes back in the final kilometer. Could be absolute cinema.

 

[Valv.Piti]

Remember Joao actually beat Jonas on a MTF in Paris-Nice and that he has shown an incredible level this year. Ayuso is more the wildcard as staubsauger points out, but both of these riders at 100% and this race won't be easy for Jonas at all IMO. Jonas was very good in Spain in 2023, but still not at his best. Should have won the race though.

Who else can challenge Jonas and UAE? Enriki Mas is interesting as usual, but lacks the final bit in order to win. Maybe Bora will show up with the big guns? They are already bringingg Hindley and Giulio, but how about Lipo and Roglic? I think the latter should race. Landa is interesting, but like Mas, doubt he has the top end level anymore. Maybe Gall? Vuelta is pretty bad for him though. Bernal and Gee will probably line up along with Carapaz as well, he's probably the most interesting out of the bunch.

 

[P4rthen0n]

Remember Joao actually beat Jonas on a MTF in Paris-Nice and that he has shown an incredible level this year. Ayuso is more the wildcard as staubsauger points out, but both of these riders at 100% and this race won't be easy for Jonas at all IMO. Jonas was very good in Spain in 2023, but still not at his best. Should have won the race though.

Who else can challenge Jonas and UAE? Enriki Mas is interesting as usual, but lacks the final bit in order to win. Maybe Bora will show up with the big guns? They are already bringingg Hindley and Giulio, but how about Lipo and Roglic? I think the latter should race. Landa is interesting, but like Mas, doubt he has the top end level anymore. Maybe Gall? Vuelta is pretty bad for him though. Bernal and Gee will probably line up along with Carapaz as well, he's probably the most interesting out of the bunch.

That's Paris-Nice stage 4. What a beautiful final 2,5km.
I believe stage 5 of Tour de Suisse this year was another one of those epic yoyos from Almeida. Got dropped at 5km to go, got back and then almost won the sprint against Onley (bad timing for the final punch).
As an Almeida fan it is nerve-racking watching him drop, but it is so satisfying watching him come back out of nowhere and finish strong.

Ayuso on the other hand seems much more confident in his abilities. He will go on the offensive with a vicious kick. Great rider when on form.
When not on form he is prone to crashes and bee stings.

 

[buddy buddy buddy]

Does he even have fans? Fans of him, not Pogacar haters.

yes, thousands of millions

 

[pastronef]

When not on form he is prone to crashes and bee stings.

did you see how swollen his eye and face were?

 

[P4rthen0n]

did you see how swollen his eye and face were?

Yes. I don't know why he thought he could ride like that. He was out of GC by then, so no point other than toughness and bravery.
I honestly don't understand how these guys can withstand so much pain, for so long.

 

[ice&fire]

yes, thousands of millions

As expected, his fans overestimate themselves as much as he does

 

[Cycling111]

This is the first time that a mistreated cyclist has been allowed to lead Tirreno-Adriatico, Volta-Catalunya, and two GT races at 22/23 years.

Strange mistreatment situation.

 

[QueenStagiaire]

This is the first time that a mistreated cyclist has been allowed to lead Tirreno-Adriatico, Volta-Catalunya, and two GT races at 22/23 years.

Strange mistreatment situation.

Well, the only guys mistreating him are people like you who think he shouldn‘t be leading those races out of an unending grudge.

 

[ice&fire]

It's now official. Team Ayuso will be at the Vuelta with a UAE jersey.

UAE Team Emirates-XRG confirm Vuelta a España line-up - UAE team Emirates

João 
Almeida to lead Emirati squad in Spain with Juan Ayuso co-leader, as Tadej Pogačar targets Canada after Tour de France glory

www.uaeteamemirates.com

 

[fenns]

Poland is still on his program

 

[Cycling111]

Poland is still on his program

PCS usually takes a while to modify some data.

Now it's Del Toro who will go to Poland.

 

[Rou]

San Sebastian is in 3 days.
Del Toro has been in good shape after the Giro.
What if he is much stronger and destroys Ayuso in San Sebastian?
What will the team say then about Ayuso being added to the Vuelta instead of Isaac?
All of this is a huge mess.

 

[Valv.Piti]

Del Toro has been riding a very hard schedule and has been flying in July as well. Thats usually not a great recipe for a Vuelta, and he's still very young, so its only normal really that he doesn't go. He will get plenty of opportunities here in some nice WT races in San Sebastian and Poland and add some big wins to his palmarés.

 

[SafeBet]

San Sebastian is in 3 days.
Del Toro has been in good shape after the Giro.
What if he is much stronger and destroys Ayuso in San Sebastian?
What will the team say then about Ayuso being added to the Vuelta instead of Isaac?
All of this is a huge mess.

Del Toro was never scheduled to ride the Vuelta.
Young riders never do 2 GTS a year with UAE. It's their policy.

 

[Rou]

Del Toro was never scheduled to ride the Vuelta.
Young riders never do 2 GTS a year with UAE. It's their policy.

Good thing that Ayuso is an old veteran so he can ride 2 GTs.

 

[Red Rick]

Good thing that Ayuso is an old veteran so he can ride 2 GTs.

Ayuso rode his first GT in 2022. Del Toro last year.

 

[HashRouge]

Good thing that Ayuso is an old veteran so he can ride 2 GTs.

I suspect because his Giro was a bit of a disaster, with crashes and then having to withdraw, they've made an exception. It's also a logical substitution if Pogacar doesn't want to go, although perhaps Almeida might have preferred Majka! Do we think this will persuade Ayuso to stay at UAE? I'd love to see him on another team, so I really hope not!