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Teams & Riders Mark Cavendish Discussion Thread

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Franklin

May 26, 2009
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Re:

Dekker_Tifosi said:
Strange to see a rider that dominated sprints in the TDF in such fashion end up like this years later. Sad.
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Not so strange. He has been declining for awhile... there are sprinters who faded much more abruptly. I also argue that Mark will never be something else than a pure sprinter. Now that weapon has been dulled.

The really fast guys like Mark generally don't evolve into a more all-round rider. OTOH the more all-round racers like Hushovd generally don't dominate the sprints, especially not for many years. Even the phenomenal Peter Sagan does not dominate the sprint like Mark or Mario and Allesandro did in their best years.

Mark is one of the three sprinters to make a credible claim on being the GOAT (Darrigade/Cipollini are the other two), but I think it's pretty much over now.

But please, let him prove me wrong! :cool:
 
SHAD0W93

SHAD0W93

Aug 13, 2011
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Well that stinks but now he can focus on his family. I wonder if he would try going all in for track at the Olympics. As he was my first favorite rider and who helped get me into cycling I wish he could have left on top. If only 14, 17, and 18 went differently for him but he had a phenomenal career. All things must come to an end and sadly it is the Manx Missiles time.
 
Tonton

Tonton

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Re: Re:

Leggitte said:
Mark is one of the three sprinters to make a credible claim on being the GOAT (Darrigade/Cipollini are the other two), but I think it's pretty much over now.
Click to expand...

Freddy Maertens?
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At his best, Maertens was pretty much unbeatable, but he didn't go win stages year after year like Cav' did. Only Darrigade is in the same league from a TdF prospective. From a sprinters' prospective, Cipo, Petacchi come to mind, others didn't focus on Le Tour like Cavendish and were monster sprinters, like Sercu.

Mark Cavendish is too one-dimensional to deserve 34 or more TdF stage wins. Now it looks like it won't happen. Regardless, Big Champion. And now he can enjoy his money, his family, That's what I'd do if I were him. He's still young as a human being. Enjoy life Mark. Go see Angkor Wat. Machu Picchu, a little dip in Waikiki, maybe a journo gig to stay in cycling...
 
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Franklin

May 26, 2009
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Re: Re:

Leggitte said:
Mark is one of the three sprinters to make a credible claim on being the GOAT (Darrigade/Cipollini are the other two), but I think it's pretty much over now.
Click to expand...

Freddy Maertens?
Click to expand...
Arguably a greater rider with a GT win, 2 WC and an all round classic rider (also in his best years a beast in TT's). But Maertens was the best sprinter for just a few specific years, whereas Cipo and Maertens just stacked up multiple wins year after year. Just in absolute GT stage wins he isn't in the same category (but his average on the few GT's he rode is shocking). So even though the argument could be made I rank Mario and Mark higher as pure sprinters.

Then again, does Darrigade deserve to be in the running over Maertens? This is the perpetual problem with these kinds of lists... comparing era's and palmares is futile... and a lot of fun :)

So sure: Maertens/Cav/Cipo for the best three sprinters, followed by Darrigade and Alejet. *I wonder which superstar I'm forgetting *

The Cipo versus Cav is interesting. Cipo has an eyewatering amount of GT stage wins, but Cav has more TdF stage wins. That's partly by Cipo's choice as he couldn't be arsed to drag his body over the French cols (something he was more than capable of). I think I give the nod to Mark due to the TdF being the bigger event, but jeez.... so many stage wins by Mario is hard to dismiss... so I guess I pick Mario after al.... or.....ARRRRGH :D
 
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Bolder

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Re:

42x16ss said:
Good riddance. Phenomenal sprinter, but terrible person - arrogant and dangerous. His victim blaming and associated behaviour at the 2010 TdS was the final straw for me, along with his crass jibes at Greipel.
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Yeah, I mean, I try to separate the person and the performance but he was fairly aggressively arrogant. I guess it comes with the territory in a mano-a-mano event like sprinting, where having a psychological edge can make a difference.

My favorite sprinter will always be Cipo, who did everything with a wink-wink, and was so flamboyantly...Italian...that you just had to love him. Whereas I didn't see a lot of joy in Cavendish.

To his credit, though, he seems to have mellowed with age, like most of us. so I hope he accomplishes everything he wants out of life and is satisfied that he did all he could do in cycling.
 
SHAD0W93

SHAD0W93

Aug 13, 2011
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1/4 Well what can I say? I’m absolutely heart-broken by the decision that means I won’t be
@letour
this year. As I have done for my entire career, I targeted a specific time to be at peak form. This has pretty much always resulted in me hitting my goals or coming damn close.
2/4 Predominantly at the most beautiful, special race that is Le Tour de France, where 30 of these victories have defined my career.
After a long, difficult fight back from trying to compete for the whole of last season with Epstein Barr Virus and after following a specific
3/4 training program to peak in July, I feel I was in the perfect place.

Nevertheless, I truly came to
@teamdidata
with the purpose of making a difference, by mobilising entire communities in Africa with bicycles through our incredible charity
@Quebuka.
4/4 Though I won’t be there, as always I’ll be supporting my teammates with all I have, wishing them safety and success in France and hoping we can get even more children on bicycles.

Thank you all for your support
 
42x16ss

42x16ss

May 23, 2009
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Re: Re:

Franklin said:
Leggitte said:
Mark is one of the three sprinters to make a credible claim on being the GOAT (Darrigade/Cipollini are the other two), but I think it's pretty much over now.
Click to expand...

Freddy Maertens?
Click to expand...
Arguably a greater rider with a GT win, 2 WC and an all round classic rider (also in his best years a beast in TT's). But Maertens was the best sprinter for just a few specific years, whereas Cipo and Maertens just stacked up multiple wins year after year. Just in absolute GT stage wins he isn't in the same category (but his average on the few GT's he rode is shocking). So even though the argument could be made I rank Mario and Mark higher as pure sprinters.

Then again, does Darrigade deserve to be in the running over Maertens? This is the perpetual problem with these kinds of lists... comparing era's and palmares is futile... and a lot of fun :)

So sure: Maertens/Cav/Cipo for the best three sprinters, followed by Darrigade and Alejet. *I wonder which superstar I'm forgetting *

The Cipo versus Cav is interesting. Cipo has an eyewatering amount of GT stage wins, but Cav has more TdF stage wins. That's partly by Cipo's choice as he couldn't be arsed to drag his body over the French cols (something he was more than capable of). I think I give the nod to Mark due to the TdF being the bigger event, but jeez.... so many stage wins by Mario is hard to dismiss... so I guess I pick Mario after al.... or.....ARRRRGH :D
Click to expand...
Don't forget that Cipollini was effectively banned from the Tour from 2000-2003 for wearing whatever he wanted. At his strike rate, that probably would have been 5-10 stage wins.

Cipo also had slightly better results in the classics, winning E3 and 3x G-W
 
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