Merckx picks Gilbert over Van den Broeck for good Tour finish

[Altitude]

http://www.velonation.com/News/ID/6344/Eddy-Merckx-picks-Gilbert-over-Van-den-Broeck-for-good-Tour-finish.aspx

Wishful thinking?

 

[Sophistic]

Lose more weight?Gilbert weighs around 67-68kg according to all the infos i could find on the internets with help of the google, so weight's not the issue.
The question is whether Gilberts strength at the classics/weakness in the higher mountains is a result of his training or simply because of higher anaerobic vs aerobic talent and biomechanic efficency at different wattage.

 

[Kvinto]

He's simply not interest in this. Yes, he can lose some weight, maybe he'll be able to be good in high mountains, but one thing is certain - he'll never become a climber and he is not time trialist. He's one of the best classic specialists and I don't think he'll ever sacrifice all this for something uncertain and fantastic like GT general classification.

 

[El Pistolero]

Lose more weight?Gilbert weighs around 67-68kg according to all the infos i could find on the internets with help of the google, so weight's not the issue.
The question is whether Gilberts strength at the classics/weakness in the higher mountains is a result of his training or simply because of higher anaerobic vs aerobic talent and biomechanic efficency at different wattage.

Well, 6kg less could do a lot for him.

But Gilbert shouldn't be thinking about going after GTs now. His goal is to win all important classics.

 

[roundabout]

Maybe after Gilbert wins all the major classics.

 

[The Hitch]

He's simply not interest in this. Yes, he can lose some weight, maybe he'll be able to be good in high mountains, but one thing is certain - he'll never become a climber and he is not time trialist. He's one of the best classic specialists and I don't think he'll ever sacrifice all this for something uncertain and fantastic like GT general classification.

He came 6th in the Vuelta Toledo tt in 09 and 9th in the long Vuelta tt this year. In both cases he came above the gt winner and in both cases he didnt have much to fight for. So as far as tts go id say hes good. Id say he could win them if he was fighting for a gc spot.

But Gilberts aim is the monuments. Hes a classics specialist. So he will never try for the gc. I think he could make it. But well never know.

 

[hrotha]

I don't see why Gilbert would want to stop being the best hilly classics specialist around to become just another GT contender. Honestly I can't imagine him doing much better than, say, Bartoli.

 

[Mambo95]

Eddy Merckx is to cycling what Pele is to football. The greatest of all-time, but a lousy pundit.

 

[The Devil]

Gilbert will never be a contender in a Grand Tour. Eddy was a great bike rider but his logic in this article is flawed. Gilbert will never be a great climber in a three week race. He is not amongst the top TT riders. He will win stages and continue to win one day classics.

 

[Kvinto]

He came 6th in the Vuelta Toledo tt in 09 and 9th in the long Vuelta tt this year. In both cases he came above the gt winner and in both cases he didnt have much to fight for. So as far as tts go id say hes good. Id say he could win them if he was fighting for a gc spot.

But Gilberts aim is the monuments. Hes a classics specialist. So he will never try for the gc. I think he could make it. But well never know.

I remember these results, but it means only that he can do good tt in top form. When you riding for GC tt can be different (too much strength was spent in mountains). Gilbert's Vuelta tts are demonstration of his power before autumn classics.
But the times of Merckx and Hinault are gone for good. You can't be competitive in both Roubaix(Vlaanderen) and Tour Gilbert chose his way and it's right way

 

[Winterfold]

Merckx has this wrong IMO

It is ridiculous that at 68kg at his height Gilbert is a built and muscular rider but it is clearly how it is so a 1 day specialist and stage winner he is.

But any real cycling fan know who best rider is so it doesnt really matter despite merckx

 

[boardhanger]

At the end of the day what is Merckx saying about the future of Belge cyclisme and van den Broeck??

 

[luckyboy]

Eddy Merckx is to cycling what Pele is to football. The greatest of all-time, but a lousy pundit.

Exactly.

I mean I really like Gilbert, but Jesus this is just crazy.

 

[boardhanger]

Exactly.

I mean I really like Gilbert, but Jesus this is just crazy.

The only critisism I have for Gilbert (who I really like) is his timming. Either too early or too late when he makes his moves. Has anyone else noticed this?

 

[unsheath]

You have to remember GTs are as much about recovery as your power to weight. JVDB clearly takes the load of 3 weeks racing quite well. Gilbert for whatever reasons, not so much.

 

[theyoungest]

You have to remember GTs are as much about recovery as your power to weight. JVDB clearly takes the load of 3 weeks racing quite well. Gilbert for whatever reasons, not so much.

He never tried, so how do you know?

 

[Kvinto]

IMO if he has had some GC abilities and riding for the french team so long, he would never became purely classic specialist

 

[El Pistolero]

IMO if he has had some GC abilities and riding for the french team so long, he would never became purely classic specialist

That French team let him ride a lot of French domestic races though. They kinda wasted his talent for quite a few years, but oh well...

 

[Kvinto]

That French team let him ride a lot of French domestic races though. They kinda wasted his talent for quite a few years, but oh well...

Not quite so. In FDJ he has ridden different types of races. He started his first grand tour in 22, first Tour de France – in 23, and at that times his team has no real leader to work for. He was promising in sprints, rode in breakaways... But in classic races he was more successful. After some not bad results in 2004 and 2005 he approved himself a talanted classic rider in 2006 season wining Het Volk, GP de Fourmies and 2nd placed at Belgium championship RR. Next big classic success is 2008 (the last year with FDJ): Chellenge Mallorca, Het Volk, Le Samyn, Paris – Tours, Sanremo (3rd).

When Philippe left FDJ he already was strong classic rider. Maybe it would have been better to do this earlier, but we'll never know… We just know that in Lotto Gilbert improved to one of the best classic riders, he came to new level as a favourite at TOP one day races.
Yes, there are some problems with french teams – french races, but I think it’s unfair to say that he was wasting his talent in FDJ.

 

[Cobblestoned]

He came 6th in the Vuelta Toledo tt in 09 and 9th in the long Vuelta tt this year. In both cases he came above the gt winner and in both cases he didnt have much to fight for. So as far as tts go id say hes good. Id say he could win them if he was fighting for a gc spot.

But Gilberts aim is the monuments. Hes a classics specialist. So he will never try for the gc. I think he could make it. But well never know.

You mean that pair-TT ?

Wonder how much he had to pay afterwards.

 

[Dekker_Tifosi]

Proof that Merckx is definately going senile. Or: how he doesn't understand modern cycling as opposed to his era.

 

[theyoungest]

Proof that Merckx is definately going senile. Or: how he doesn't understand modern cycling as opposed to his era.

It's not that insane IMO. Look at Hesjedal for a recent example of a hilly rider-turned-Tour contender. Until this year there was never any sign he could do top-10 in any GT, let alone the Tour. He was always mediocre at best on the longer climbs, like Gilbert is now.

 

[jens_attacks]

you heard it here first:cancellara and gillbert will be grand tour contenders in 2015.i think they both will win all the 5 monuments and then will focus on grand tours.gillbert looked this vuelta insanely strong.if he wants to fight for GC,he can.

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Let's not get ahead of ourselves. Hesjedal is not a Tour contender.

And the whole top-10-in-any-GT-let-alone-the-Tour fails to take a couple of things into account:

1) for a rider like Hesjedal, the Tour top 10 is more realistic for his capabilities than the Giro or Vuelta because of the terrain and types of climbs
2) the more cagey way the Tour is raced makes it easier for an interloper in the top 10 to defend that position, because fewer riders are willing to commit to a risky attack
3) Hesjedal was not bought as a threat by anybody and as a result people didn't work to isolate or drop him. Just ask Wiggins how easy it is to double up. History is littered with people who managed one GT top 10 but never made it back there.
4) Hesjedal had most of his team working on the front on the run-in to Pau to limit the breakaway's gains to protect his top 10 position from Horner and Plaza. In what other race would you see top riders kill themselves to protect a teammate's 10th place?

Hesjedal will never be a Tour contender. He may do the occasional good GC placing, but he's not going to threaten to win a GT any more than Marco Pinotti or Luís León Sánchez are.

 

[The Hitch]

It's not that insane IMO. Look at Hesjedal for a recent example of a hilly rider-turned-Tour contender. Until this year there was never any sign he could do top-10 in any GT, let alone the Tour. He was always mediocre at best on the longer climbs, like Gilbert is now.

Agreed. And Heysjdal isnt even Garmins best example.

A individual persuit rider coming 4th in the grandady of them all (would have been 3rd if not for a lucky 40 second break/ having a weaker team in the ttt)

Gilbert is a hilly classics specialist on the other hand. Im not saying Gilbert will do it, but if Wigo can, then Phillip sure has a chance.