Mikel Landa Discussion Thread

[Koronin]

Re:

[quote="Nirvana":11fyfmgs]In the interview after the team presentation showed last week at Radiocorsa Valverde said that he likes very much the Giro route and in the one showed on Movistar+ that was his plan to ride Giro and Vuelta but after the Tour presentation the team decided to send all three to the Tour.

Anyway Landa seems to have gotten a fixation with the Tour, in the interview for Radiocorsa the journalist asked to him about the Giro and he said that he won't return because his aim is to win the Tour.

Probably the Giro team will be lead by Amador even if in an interview for Marca published on monday he said that he'll go to Italy to help one of the three leaders.

Why don't they at least send valverde to the Giro? He has shown so often that he can ride well in two consecutive gt's. Also Landa should really shut his mouth. The team decides which races they want their riders to participate in and movistar has every right to say landa should try the giro before the tour. He knew he joined a team with quintana so he really shouldn't expect the team to completely focus around him.

If Valverde will ride the Giro won't ride the Tour because he'll focus the second half of the season around the Vuelta and WC so he can't ride three GT. I think he sees Insbruck as a last chance for the gold, in the Movistar+ interview talking about the WC he said that before the presentation of the Insbruck route he tought that was over for him to win the raimbow.

Anyway if Valverde say "i want to go to the Giro" i think they let him do what he want but probably we'll have to wait, in the interview for Radiocorsa he said that he know for sure only that he'll ride the two hilly races in Mallorca and Vuelta Valenciana, the rest of his race schedule has still to be decided because first he has to verify if he's still the same Alejandro of before (referring to the crash).[/quote]


I'm pretty sure his participation in the Vuelta a Murcia has also been confirmed.

I agree that they are waiting to see how his knee is under race conditions before they actually decide where he's going.
I also believe that when it comes down to it if he wants to do the Giro/Vuelta double that's what he's going to end up doing. The reason he won't do the Giro/Tour double again is because he's stated multiple times he won't miss the Vuelta baring illness or injury. He loves the Vuelta too much. Unless of course he actually wants another shot at a top 10 in all 3 Grand Tours, however with this year's Worlds I do not think this is the year to attempt that again. I also think the team will give Valverde what he actually wants regardless of what they've said. By doing this is also allows Landa do actually do what he wanted which is the Tour/Vuelta because he wants to go to the Vuelta in hopes of getting on the Spanish National team for the Worlds. Which he may or may not get.
Truthfully I still think Landa and Valverde should go to the Giro, Landa and Quintana to the Tour, and Quintana and Valverde to the Vuelta. It just makes more sense to me, but I don't run the team.

 

[movingtarget]

Re: Re:

Why does he always feel the need to point that out? We have understood it by now..

He's trying to mess with Nairo's head.

Quintana doesn't need any help with that............he seems to have his excuses written down before the race starts.

 

[Alexandre B.]

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/landa-i-have-to-pursue-my-goals/

“That time as a domestique is behind me,” Landa told AS. “They stopped me at both Astana and Sky when I had the legs to win. If they tell me to stop again, I will not. I have to pursue my goals.”

Landa insisted, however, that there would be no problems of coexistence with the established leaders Quintana and Valverde. Quintana is set to target the Tour in 2018 after his ill-fated tilt at the Giro-Tour double this season, while Valverde returns to action after breaking his kneecap on the opening day of the Tour in Düsseldorf.

“It’s perhaps more relaxed with Alejandro, who is a very cheerful person,” Landa said of his rapport with his co-leaders. “I understand that Nairo is stressing his status as a leader: he wants his opportunities, like I want mine. I deserve them and we will complement each other.”

[...]

“In principle, [I’ll ride] the Tour and Vuelta. I have gathered years of experience and I believe that I have earned the right to come to the Grand Tours with freedom to move,” said Landa, who revisited the disappointment of his near miss at the Tour.

“With time, it hurts more. That’s why I want to ride for myself, so I won’t have anything to reproach myself for. I was blocked in those three weeks in the service of Froome. I knew that it was going to be like that, but I still would have appreciated if they had played my card so we could both have finished on the podium in Paris.”

Recipe for disaster.

Very individualistic approach, by the way.

 

[Zinoviev Letter]

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/landa-i-have-to-pursue-my-goals/

Mouthing off about not being willing to follow team orders again. The guy is hilarious.

 

[portugal11]

Free Landa!!! I'm really excited to see a 2009 astana all over again in the tour

 

[Zinoviev Letter]

Re:

Free Landa!!! I'm really excited to see a 2009 astana all over again in the tour

Yeah, I don’t understand any cycling fan who wants anything less than all out civil war from this situation. Give us the full Roche - Visentini madness please!

 

[huge]

Why the hell did he go to Movistar???!

Pretty sure nobody ever guaranteed him team leadership when NQ is around.

This gus strikes me as, let's say, not very smart.

 

[staubsauger]

I thought he wisely had chosen Movistar for Giro leadership. Obviously that's not the case anymore.

 

[Koronin]

I'm really wondering what both his reason for going to Movistar and the team's reason for bringing him in unless they were expecting wanting a war between Landa and Quintana? At this point not sure what to make of this.
It appears Landa is more than willing to accept that Valverde is and is going to continue to be the team leader there. (Comments he's made outside of his Tour comments).
I think we're all going to need popcorn for the Tour. We're also going to find out if Valverde can keep the team from imploding because this war between Quintana and Landa is certaining aiming towards that end.

 

[rick james]

I’m sure he’ll spit the dummy out with Movistar as well

 

[Escarabajo]

“That time as a domestique is behind me,” Landa told AS. “They stopped me at both Astana and Sky when I had the legs to win. If they tell me to stop again, I will not. I have to pursue my goals.”

I guess Unzue knew it all the way.

 

[Salvarani]

Re:

Why the hell did he go to Movistar???!

Pretty sure nobody ever guaranteed him team leadership when NQ is around.

This gus strikes me as, let's say, not very smart.

Or he went where the check was...

Switching from Astana to Sky to Movistar... Im pretty sure he gotten a raise for every switch he made and a cycling career is relatively short, so he probably pretty smart actually.

Landa will get his shot in a GT next year if he is strong enough or has the form to challenge.

Going in with them three in a GT will only cause problems if they start arguing with each other or cant set their egos aside. In the mountains it is every man for himself most times. It will sort itself out when they get there.

If they help each other out during the first week with the help of the rest of the team. Then they can just go from there. Easier said than done.

 

[Blanco]

He certainly have a big mouth. Let's see if he can back that up with his riding.

 

[Bot. Sky_Bot]

Re:

I'm really wondering what both his reason for going to Movistar and the team's reason for bringing him in unless they were expecting wanting a war between Landa and Quintana? At this point not sure what to make of this.
It appears Landa is more than willing to accept that Valverde is and is going to continue to be the team leader there. (Comments he's made outside of his Tour comments).
I think we're all going to need popcorn for the Tour. We're also going to find out if Valverde can keep the team from imploding because this war between Quintana and Landa is certaining aiming towards that end.

I don't think so. He doesn't even consider Valverde as his main rival to a position of team leader in TdF.

 

[Jspear]

Re:

“That time as a domestique is behind me,” Landa told AS. “They stopped me at both Astana and Sky when I had the legs to win. If they tell me to stop again, I will not. I have to pursue my goals.”

I guess Unzue knew it all the way.

I like this attitude! He’ll give us a great show whatever GT he rides.

 

[hrotha]

Yeah, well, he might, but it's not the first time he says something like that and then went back to not walking the walk on the road. Landa is so full of himself in the worst possible way.

 

[trevim]

It's getting harder and harder to be a fan of Landa, so much talent but I just can't listen to him anymore complaining about leadership. Just shut the f**** up and play with whatever cards you were dealt, nobody forced him to sign with a team with Quintana and Valverde, he had plenty of options so just stop crying and do the job you're paid to do even if that means sacrificing your chances for others.

 

[Koronin]

Re: Re:

I'm really wondering what both his reason for going to Movistar and the team's reason for bringing him in unless they were expecting wanting a war between Landa and Quintana? At this point not sure what to make of this.
It appears Landa is more than willing to accept that Valverde is and is going to continue to be the team leader there. (Comments he's made outside of his Tour comments).
I think we're all going to need popcorn for the Tour. We're also going to find out if Valverde can keep the team from imploding because this war between Quintana and Landa is certaining aiming towards that end.

I don't think so. He doesn't even consider Valverde as his main rival to a position of team leader in TdF.

That would be because Valverde himself is no longer targeting the TdF. He's said it's not one of his goals and hasn't been since 2014. Remember Valverde was considering a Giro/Vuelta double this and not even going to the Tour. So of course he's not the main rival for the race leadership role for the Tour. Valverde, however, is still the team leader and will be until he chooses to retire. Landa does not seem to have any interest in trying to argue about that. Landa seems more than happy to let Valverde continue to have the pressure and responsibilities of team leader. Also you're forgetting that the team has also made a distinction between race leadership and team leadership. Before both the 2016 and 2017 Tour the team specifically has stated multiple times that Quintana was the Tour leader, but that Valverde was the Team leader.

 

[hfer07]

Lets remind ourselves & to himself that as gifted & great rider Landani has become, He's yet to win a Grand Tour whereas Nairo has already won 2. Words mean nothing if the facts don't back them up.

Now, If Landani has a better shot at winning the Tour during the race while Nairo is behind the GC, then there is a legit call for full support, but if he thinks he's going freestyle in complete disarray of the team's plan, then I foresee a lot of tension.

 

[hrotha]

Not a single day without Landa'ing.
http://www.diariovasco.com/deportes/ciclismo/mikel-landa-ciclista-20171226012022-ntvo.html

 

[Zinoviev Letter]

Re:

Not a single day without Landa'ing.
http://www.diariovasco.com/deportes/ciclismo/mikel-landa-ciclista-20171226012022-ntvo.html

I had mixed opinions about Landa, but now I think he’s the most amusing rider in the peloton.

 

[Escarabajo]

Why did he go to Movistar then?

Didn't other teams asked for his services. He could have been the leader in other teams.

 

[Koronin]

Re:

Why did he go to Movistar then?

Didn't other teams asked for his services. He could have been the leader in other teams.

He said something about wanting to go "home" to race. For a Spaniard "home" is Movistar as they are the only Spanish WT team.

 

[chiocciolis_calves]

In a peloton of mostly boring riders and a mostly boring, PC fandom, we're complaining about Landa's interviews in which he demonstrates some personality and spunk?

 

[HelloDolly]

Re:

In a peloton of mostly boring riders and a mostly boring, PC fandom, we're complaining about Landa's interviews in which he demonstrates some personality and spunk?

That is not personailty or spunk....that is just idle talk
He had opportunities to show spunk and he didnt ....he didnt at Astana and he didnt at SKY

Any rider can talk as if a champion....few can deliver

Froome, Contador, Roche, etc delivered when push came to shove

What has Landa done....talks as if someone needs to clear his way

At Movistar there will be a plan by managment ...and it will not be the Landa plan

But he does sound funny...with his proclamations