Mikel Landa Discussion Thread

[Metabolol]

Re: Re:

Dont seem, He has signed for SKY for 2 years with the condicition to lead Giro and Vuelta the first year.
He has a good oportunity to learn a lot about modern cycling and to improve his ITT. But I hope he keep his instint of old cycling.

I think Astana is going to do his life impossible in la Vuelta. I would like to find Vino face to face in that case. I hope to talk a little with Landa in Burgos.

Yesterday I rode with an ex-mate of Landa in Euskaltel, he was quite surprised if SKy is the team he chose.

He is the kind of rider that Quintana is, maybe more offensive, but he is not so good.

His attacks are more explosive than Quintana though and I think his peak level is at least as high as Quintana's in one single climb. But maybe he is not as strong as Quintana when you have many hard mountain stages in a row. We will see.

We won't. Sounds like we won't see them both peak for the same GT for a few years.

Well, I didn't necessarily mean that they have to go head to head to see that. We will see how Landa handles the pressure when he leads a team.

 

[Taxus4a]

Re: Re:

Dont seem, He has signed for SKY for 2 years with the condicition to lead Giro and Vuelta the first year.
He has a good oportunity to learn a lot about modern cycling and to improve his ITT. But I hope he keep his instint of old cycling.

I think Astana is going to do his life impossible in la Vuelta. I would like to find Vino face to face in that case. I hope to talk a little with Landa in Burgos.

Yesterday I rode with an ex-mate of Landa in Euskaltel, he was quite surprised if SKy is the team he chose.

He is the kind of rider that Quintana is, maybe more offensive, but he is not so good.

His attacks are more explosive than Quintana though and I think his peak level is at least as high as Quintana's in one single climb. But maybe he is not as strong as Quintana when you have many hard mountain stages in a row. We will see.

Quintana has beated him not just only in Neila, In races Landa was strong, as Madrid or l Avenir, Quintana climbed a point above. Tour is not il Giro. Landa is maybe more explosive, but they like the same kind of climbs. Quintana is now much better in ITT, but I think Landa has the potential to tt similar, he need to work it more and to be more cofidence.

Anyway I just would be happy if he destroy a stage in the Dolomites. But not all the years people as Contador go to the Giro, the interest is to beat someone stronger than you in the ITT... a fight Aru, Landa, Pozzovivo..., could even have a good level, but is not so interesting. At least with Purito would be ok. but not the same...

In la Vuelta we could see this year Froome, Quintana, Van Garderen, Valverde, Nibali,.. that is another level...Tour level starlist, but a point below level than in the Tour, of course...

Landa in the Tour could have done this year a similar tour as Bardet...if he is in the situation of Mollema, I dont know if he have that motivation tio suffer for a top 10 instead look for an stage. But he has that magic potential to show much more than Mollema in a really hard stage. Just a point below of Quintana is a lot, Quintana is touched by angels to climb.

 

[Metabolol]

Yes, that is true. Overall pressure is higher in the Tour and it will of course take away some of the energy to perform well in climb after climb. We have seen many good climbers through the years who couldn't handle the overall tempo and pressure in the Tour so they have to settle for going for stages (but I also think that in the past it has been a doping issue because France has been more strict in the last 15 years). But in the Giro and Vuelta they can be competitive in the GC. Maybe the situation would be the same for Landa.

 

[MatParker117]

Re:

Dont seem, He has signed for SKY for 2 years with the condicition to lead Giro and Vuelta the first year.
He has a good oportunity to learn a lot about modern cycling and to improve his ITT. But I hope he keep his instint of old cycling.

I think Astana is going to do his life impossible in la Vuelta. I would like to find Vino face to face in that case. I hope to talk a little with Landa in Burgos.

Yesterday I rode with an ex-mate of Landa in Euskaltel, he was quite surprised if SKy is the team he chose.

He is the kind of rider that Quintana is, maybe more offensive, but he is not so good.

I expect Benat, Izaguirre Brothers & Nieve will form the core of his support in Italy with Kriy, Lopez, Puccio & Viviani to round it off. Paris-Nice, Basque Country and maybe Trentino or the Ruta del Sol could be races he targets as well.

 

[Matteo.]

As the first race after the Giro , he does well. Unfortunately , we didn't see last climb but he seems in good form.
we'll see in Burgos

 

[coinneach]

Re: Re:

With Sky tends to give Thomas some leadership in Grand Tours, Landa's cards have gone a bit worse imho.

Movistar could probably still give him a decent support team at the Giro as we saw this year. Still, he would be a Basque team what could create some polemics, couldn't it?

What was the 3rd team? Lampre? Tinkoff, Katusha?

Kathousa for sure and maybe BMC as well.

Movistar is not a basque team.

LOL of course they are not.

Sorry I got no clue what my phone did there.

“He would be a Basque on a Spanish team“ it should have been!

Just like Gorka Izaguirre and Benat Intxausti. it's not an issue, not in the least because Movistar's home base is Navarra, which some consider as part of the "Basque country".

Only extreme Basques, surely?

 

[Taxus4a]

Re: Re:

With Sky tends to give Thomas some leadership in Grand Tours, Landa's cards have gone a bit worse imho.

Movistar could probably still give him a decent support team at the Giro as we saw this year. Still, he would be a Basque team what could create some polemics, couldn't it?

What was the 3rd team? Lampre? Tinkoff, Katusha?

Kathousa for sure and maybe BMC as well.

Movistar is not a basque team.

LOL of course they are not.

Sorry I got no clue what my phone did there.

“He would be a Basque on a Spanish team“ it should have been!

Just like Gorka Izaguirre and Benat Intxausti. it's not an issue, not in the least because Movistar's home base is Navarra, which some consider as part of the "Basque country".

Only extreme Basques, surely?

Northern Navarra is the most basque part of the world, in fact, baque people started there and went to the west, but the south is not properly basque, although for a basque nacionalist all Navarra is Euskadi. For me is strange when today they consider Enrique sanz as basque, but lot of riders as Mikel Nieve are basque.

About Mikel, he was today as strong as 2 years ago, although he finished far of the best.

In Burgos is Quintana is there, is the favourite, other way I hope Landa can win at least one stage. In Pineda Dani Moreno is maybe better, but Neila y not much harder.

 

[ice&fire]

Re: Re:

With Sky tends to give Thomas some leadership in Grand Tours, Landa's cards have gone a bit worse imho.

Movistar could probably still give him a decent support team at the Giro as we saw this year. Still, he would be a Basque team what could create some polemics, couldn't it?

What was the 3rd team? Lampre? Tinkoff, Katusha?

Kathousa for sure and maybe BMC as well.

Movistar is not a basque team.

LOL of course they are not.

Sorry I got no clue what my phone did there.

“He would be a Basque on a Spanish team“ it should have been!

Just like Gorka Izaguirre and Benat Intxausti. it's not an issue, not in the least because Movistar's home base is Navarra, which some consider as part of the "Basque country".

Only extreme Basques, surely?

The Navarrese regional government is currently headed by a Basque Nationalist party, so there seems to be a good amount of them.

 

[Matteo.]

Quintana would be a great test. But i doubt he will be in Burgos if he goes for the Vuelta

 

[sir fly]

Is Landa's flight over to Sky a done deal, or Froomey hasn't got another super-domestique for the Vuelta yet?

 

[PremierAndrew]

Re:

Is Landa's flight over to Sky a done deal, or Froomey hasn't got another super-domestique for the Vuelta yet?

Tinkov seemed to think it was done in his latest blog, though don't think it's been confirmed officially yet

 

[sir fly]

Re: Re:

Is Landa's flight over to Sky a done deal, or Froomey hasn't got another super-domestique for the Vuelta yet?

Tinkov seemed to think it was done in his latest blog, though don't think it's been confirmed officially yet

An official confirmation might produce controversies depending on development of Vuelta. That could be the cause of silence. I doubt Landa hasn't sealed the deal yet.

 

[Marco Pantani]

The man is ready. Will be very interesting to see if he's riding for himself. Wasn't chasing Quintana today.

 

[jens_attacks]

very good signs for a good show.

 

[Mr.White]

Ready for what? What good signs? He was dropped hard on a 4km climb, not looking good to me

 

[staubsauger]

Who looked good than? Quintana exposed himself and cracked today already. He ain't got the shape to win imho.

Nibali is out already. If Aru can't deliver at Alpujarras, Landa will be given leadership this time around.

 

[Arredondo]

Landa will create carnage Without a doubt. He was up there today.

 

[Mr.White]

Re:

Who looked good than? Quintana exposed himself and cracked today already. He ain't got the shape to win imho.

Nibali is out already. If Aru can't deliver at Alpujarras, Landa will be given leadership this time around.

Well Purito and Froome for example... And Landa will hardly get the leadership, Aru needs to drop couple of minutes for that to happen. He was clearly stronger in the Giro but couldn't get the leadership. Also Nibali is not that far, he was in the crash, this is not right reflection of his strength

 

[TI-Raleigh]

Today was a good sign for Landa, because he stayed close on a stage that didn't suit him. See the Giro Abetone stage this year. Couldn't quite hang with LRP, Contador, and Aru on the final climb, but proved to be the best climber by the end of the race.

 

[Arredondo]

Re:

Today was a good sign for Landa, because he stayed close on a stage that didn't suit him. See the Giro Aprica stage this year. Couldn't quite hang with LRP, Contador, and Aru on the final climb, but proved to be the best climber by the end of the race.

He rode the first mountain stages fully in service for Aru, dragging for almost the whole climb, and even finished 4th after all that hard work behind LRP, Conta and Aru.

He was just as strong in the beginning of the Giro as he was at the end.

 

[Mr.White]

Re:

Today was a good sign for Landa, because he stayed close on a stage that didn't suit him. See the Giro Aprica stage this year. Couldn't quite hang with LRP, Contador, and Aru on the final climb, but proved to be the best climber by the end of the race.

He won the Aprica stage!

 

[KyoGrey]

Many fans expected him to do not so good in this Vuelta due to his feud with Astana and the fact he doesn't double GT's very well.

BUT, today he was in the mix, there is not an iron commander in this Vuelta...so who knows what can happen if Mikel continues building his form like in the Giro.

 

[staubsauger]

Seems like someone got his original co-leadership back tonight. Ain't it? ^^

 

[KyoGrey]

I think he will probably lose time against Aru in the first week as he is still building form.

But from then on if he manages to assimilate the rest day and the successive racing days like in the Giro, he can be a force to fear maybe not in Andorra because it is too early but yes in the Astur-Cantabrian triptic (stages 14-15-16).

And lets remember that in this Vuelta there is no tactical mastermind in the leader jersey like Contador. I honestly don't know what would happen if for example we arrive to stage 16 with Valverde/Froome/Quintana in the red jersey and Landa decides to make an all in at the slopes of the Cobertoria...

 

[Taxus4a]

I wanst any optimistic for him in this Vuelta, but the fact is that although yesterday Luis leon worked for Aru and even Landa worked a little to chase Quintana, Landa was a quite protected rider, and he just lose 4 second with Aru, so I still think he can be in the podium fighten for la Vuelta.

It is difficult, becouse he is not the leader, but with Nibali out he has his chances.. In the Giro is was clear Aru has serious chances of podium, but here that is no so clear with Quintana, Valverde, Froome, Purito and more good riders.