Teams & Riders Nairo Quintana discussion thread

[hfer07]

Re:

http://www.biciciclismo.com/es/quintana-hemos-debilitado-al-sky-22-07-2015

He is really talking BS here, he thinks there is still lots of terrain to make up time, uhhh..

I guess he's implying time to make up in order to finish as close as possible to Froome, in some kind of self assurance that he & Movistar did everything in their will to win Le Tour...

Nonetheless he's speaking in terms of wishful thinking as far as possibilities still at his reach, when the facts are there to say otherwise.....

 

[Arnout]

Quintana should've attacked a bit more, or a bit more sustained. On the other hand you could see he was afraid of the final descent.

I still have some hope he can beat Froome in the coming stages but first place looks to be gone...

I like how people can decide he's at his top level aged 25. We don't know that. His riding style would suggest he can greatly benefit from stamina that comes with age.

 

[Metabolol]

Of course no one knows if he has reached his peak level yet, it's just a guess on my part. But many times you have early bloomers with true natural who level off at his age.

 

[ray j willings]

Froome has the yellow Jersey , Froome has it all to lose. All movie had to do is follow Froome.
He would have had to chase Bertie at some point if the gap got to big. Movie just had to suck wheels.
There was no big sky train at that point and If Bertie had got a big enough gap it would have been full gas to try and get him....Movie may as well wear Sky shirts. AWFUL.

 

[Escarabajo]

Re:

Of course no one knows if he has reached his peak level yet, it's just a guess on my part. But many times you have early bloomers with true natural who level off at his age.

I am afraid that you are right.

He has hit 6 watts/kg on long climbs several times. Not sure how much more can he bloom?

Some people asking for more are just asking for trouble!

 

[ray j willings]

Pin this on the movie bus door.

Must attack Froome to win the tour not Contador.

 

[Jelantik]

Re:

Quintana should've attacked a bit more, or a bit more sustained. On the other hand you could see he was afraid of the final descent.

I still have some hope he can beat Froome in the coming stages but first place looks to be gone...

I like how people can decide he's at his top level aged 25. We don't know that. His riding style would suggest he can greatly benefit from stamina that comes with age.

maybe that's what he got. There's probably reason why the climbing hierarchy is Froome/Contador, Quintana then Nibali. The only way he can drop Froome is by waiting until Froome is fading. Just like 2013. So good luck with that.

 

[cantpedal]

Re: Re:

Are there Alpes in Vuelta? Or what is he waiting for?
Shame that GT's dont have 40 racing days, 39 of those 20km long MTFs

He is 25, so white jersey and second in GC would be great achievement and it's not his fault that some people had unreal expectations. He is also facing very strong rival with incredible form. He said yesterday that second in GC would be a honour for him, so he is slowly accepting that he won't win this. For me this is not surprising and I don't understand why a guy who is 25 is criticized for being second in GC.

But it's very surprising that you are still posting in this thread. Half a year ago you were sure that he won't win any WT race this year and you even bet on that and you weren't here later after Tirreno win. So this is something to think about.

Come on. We have had countless Quintana fanatics claiming he his the greatest climber better than Pantani
He was 2nd last time he rode the tour. He his 25 not 19. He his not any stronger now than 2 years ago?

It's difficult to say if he is stronger than 2 years ago or not. I think Froome is a little bit stronger than 2 years ago and Quintana is maybe more or less on the same level as in 2013. I also think that heat is a big factor this year. This is an advantage for Froome and a disadvantage for Quintana/Contador/Nibali (this is not excuse!). Nibali form is biggest mystery because it was reported that his numbers were bigger before this tour than beofe tour in 2014, so in my opinion heat 'wore him out' in the first week and in the first mountain stage (this is only my theory). In my opinion differences on stage 10 would be a lot smaller with normal temperatures.

curious as to why you think the heat is bad for NQ?

 

[Arnout]

Re: Re:

Quintana should've attacked a bit more, or a bit more sustained. On the other hand you could see he was afraid of the final descent.

I still have some hope he can beat Froome in the coming stages but first place looks to be gone...

I like how people can decide he's at his top level aged 25. We don't know that. His riding style would suggest he can greatly benefit from stamina that comes with age.

maybe that's what he got. There's probably reason why the climbing hierarchy is Froome/Contador, Quintana then Nibali. The only way he can drop Froome is by waiting until Froome is fading. Just like 2013. So good luck with that.

Wait Contador was last stronger than him in a big race in the 2012 Vuelta.

 

[ILovecycling]

Re: Re:

Are there Alpes in Vuelta? Or what is he waiting for?
Shame that GT's dont have 40 racing days, 39 of those 20km long MTFs

He is 25, so white jersey and second in GC would be great achievement and it's not his fault that some people had unreal expectations. He is also facing very strong rival with incredible form. He said yesterday that second in GC would be a honour for him, so he is slowly accepting that he won't win this. For me this is not surprising and I don't understand why a guy who is 25 is criticized for being second in GC.

But it's very surprising that you are still posting in this thread. Half a year ago you were sure that he won't win any WT race this year and you even bet on that and you weren't here later after Tirreno win. So this is something to think about.

Come on. We have had countless Quintana fanatics claiming he his the greatest climber better than Pantani
He was 2nd last time he rode the tour. He his 25 not 19. He his not any stronger now than 2 years ago?

It's difficult to say if he is stronger than 2 years ago or not. I think Froome is a little bit stronger than 2 years ago and Quintana is maybe more or less on the same level as in 2013. I also think that heat is a big factor this year. This is an advantage for Froome and a disadvantage for Quintana/Contador/Nibali (this is not excuse!). Nibali form is biggest mystery because it was reported that his numbers were bigger before this tour than beofe tour in 2014, so in my opinion heat 'wore him out' in the first week and in the first mountain stage (this is only my theory). In my opinion differences on stage 10 would be a lot smaller with normal temperatures.

curious as to why you think the heat is bad for NQ?

maybe because he has lived 20 years, and trains in area with high humidity and 15 degrees
OTOH this is ideal tour preparation, ideal tour parcourse, no excuses for him.if he deosnt win he is just not good enough in comparison with Froome.(probably even with AC in top form)
The End.

 

[TomekA]

Re: Re:

Are there Alpes in Vuelta? Or what is he waiting for?
Shame that GT's dont have 40 racing days, 39 of those 20km long MTFs

He is 25, so white jersey and second in GC would be great achievement and it's not his fault that some people had unreal expectations. He is also facing very strong rival with incredible form. He said yesterday that second in GC would be a honour for him, so he is slowly accepting that he won't win this. For me this is not surprising and I don't understand why a guy who is 25 is criticized for being second in GC.

But it's very surprising that you are still posting in this thread. Half a year ago you were sure that he won't win any WT race this year and you even bet on that and you weren't here later after Tirreno win. So this is something to think about.

Come on. We have had countless Quintana fanatics claiming he his the greatest climber better than Pantani
He was 2nd last time he rode the tour. He his 25 not 19. He his not any stronger now than 2 years ago?

It's difficult to say if he is stronger than 2 years ago or not. I think Froome is a little bit stronger than 2 years ago and Quintana is maybe more or less on the same level as in 2013. I also think that heat is a big factor this year. This is an advantage for Froome and a disadvantage for Quintana/Contador/Nibali (this is not excuse!). Nibali form is biggest mystery because it was reported that his numbers were bigger before this tour than beofe tour in 2014, so in my opinion heat 'wore him out' in the first week and in the first mountain stage (this is only my theory). In my opinion differences on stage 10 would be a lot smaller with normal temperatures.

curious as to why you think the heat is bad for NQ?

His words and observation.
1) After Vuelta 2014 stage 6 where he was dropped by Valverde, Froome, Contador and Rodriguez he said heat was the main problem for him in that stage. It was very hot that day, 37C. Three days later we had cold and rainy day and Quintana was with Contador and Rodriguez at the finish, and Froome, Aru and Valverde was dropped this time. He was race leader after that day.
2) Giro 2014, stage 16. Very cold day. Obviously that was this affair with neutralisation but still the difference between him and GC rivals was bigger at the finish than at the bottom of the last climb (and he did all the work on the last climb)
3) Tirreno, Terminillo stage - one of his best stage wins. Very cold day with snow.
4) From time to time he mentions that "it was a hard day with all the heat" or something like this. He said that for example after one of flat stages in the first week in this Tour.

For me its clear that he prefers colder conditions. Maybe this is related to his pollen allergy

 

[ILovecycling]

Quintana is tired. He will try his small attacks, hoping for a Froome weakness. Otherwise not much action.

I wish he was stronger.

Has he said this is the case? Can't help but feel that he could still make it close if he just kept up an attack. The little 5 second digs don't suggest his condition one way or the other IMO.

And why exactly would he hold himself back when attacking?

Because he makes a five second effort, looks back to see Froome reeling him in, and accepts his fate. Look at Froome's trademark attacks: Skytrain until 5km to go, whittling it down to the 5 or so main GC rivals, then accelerate. There's no five second effort then look around, the plan is to accelerate and then maintain a big effort. Quintana would be able to do what Froome does if he chose to, and he could take a minute on a stage like stage 20.

Agreed. Maybe Quintana can't go faster within his limit, but he should go over his limit if staying within his limit doesn't create gaps. I want him to do the same thing as Nibali in the 2013 Vuelta versus Horner, in the last stage. It was Nibali's last chance and he attacked multiple times, sometimes distancing Horner. In the end Horner came back and Nibali dropped because he went too deep but if he hadn't done that he would've never known his or Horner's true limit.

I hope that's still to come though, you don't do that with three more stages coming up.

Just wanted to quote great Arnout point with which I fully agree in this thread.

 

[TomekA]

Re: Re:

Are there Alpes in Vuelta? Or what is he waiting for?
Shame that GT's dont have 40 racing days, 39 of those 20km long MTFs

He is 25, so white jersey and second in GC would be great achievement and it's not his fault that some people had unreal expectations. He is also facing very strong rival with incredible form. He said yesterday that second in GC would be a honour for him, so he is slowly accepting that he won't win this. For me this is not surprising and I don't understand why a guy who is 25 is criticized for being second in GC.

But it's very surprising that you are still posting in this thread. Half a year ago you were sure that he won't win any WT race this year and you even bet on that and you weren't here later after Tirreno win. So this is something to think about.

To win this tour he has to hope Froome has bad days....that would be the victory of a great champion.
.

The key of the tour is not to have bad days and if you have bad days then maybe you don't deserve to win. Bad luck is something like illness (like van Garderen) or sometimes a crash, but I wouldn't say that bad days are related to bad luck. So I think that a Tour win because somebody has a bad day is more or less normal win. You train for the tour to not to have an off day.

 

[Arnout]

Has he said this is the case? Can't help but feel that he could still make it close if he just kept up an attack. The little 5 second digs don't suggest his condition one way or the other IMO.

And why exactly would he hold himself back when attacking?

Because he makes a five second effort, looks back to see Froome reeling him in, and accepts his fate. Look at Froome's trademark attacks: Skytrain until 5km to go, whittling it down to the 5 or so main GC rivals, then accelerate. There's no five second effort then look around, the plan is to accelerate and then maintain a big effort. Quintana would be able to do what Froome does if he chose to, and he could take a minute on a stage like stage 20.

Agreed. Maybe Quintana can't go faster within his limit, but he should go over his limit if staying within his limit doesn't create gaps. I want him to do the same thing as Nibali in the 2013 Vuelta versus Horner, in the last stage. It was Nibali's last chance and he attacked multiple times, sometimes distancing Horner. In the end Horner came back and Nibali dropped because he went too deep but if he hadn't done that he would've never known his or Horner's true limit.

I hope that's still to come though, you don't do that with three more stages coming up.

Just wanted to quote great Arnout point with which I fully agree in this thread.

I want to stress that I think this is something he can learn with the years. He was able to win the Giro without going over his limit, this is the first time he comes to a race with the aim of finishing first and doesn't look like doing it (contrary to Giro '14 and Vuelta '14 where he won or was in the lead when he crashed out). Currently he's too preoccupied with not doing the attacks of the '13 Tour where he couldn't sustain his effort till the end, but I think he will learn to balance his approach with experience. Maybe already in this Tour.

 

[TourOfSardinia]

Okay, Nairo:
http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/tour-de-france-we-weakened-team-sky-says-quintana
fighting talk - I like that.
you've got my vote
please win.

 

[Miburo]

They're talking to talk but he ain't walking the walk. Piti will hold him down cause he wants to podium paris thus no long range attack from him and that's the only possible way you can damage sky/froome

 

[sunnyIce]

Ok heres whats going to happen me thinks. Froome is definitely taking one of the MTF routes from the remaining 3. In the others, he will respond to Nairo's attack just enough to ensure not too much damage is done to his Yellow which will let Nairo off to the win. 2013 all over again. At the end of the Tour, Nairo will say that he and they (movistar) were very good and tried all attacks and came very close in Week 3. And if not for the fiasco in the flat stage in Week 1, they would have made it very close for the yellow. Lol.

 

[cineteq]

Re:

Okay, Nairo:
http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/tour-de-france-we-weakened-team-sky-says-quintana
fighting talk - I like that.
you've got my vote
please win.

He needs to take the bull by the horns himself. Forget about Unzue, let alone Valverde. Most likely than not Froome will have an off day.

 

[SeriousSam]

Why is Froome more likely to have an off day than not? What's this based on?

 

[Arnout]

Ok heres whats going to happen me thinks. Froome is definitely taking one of the MTF routes from the remaining 3. In the others, he will respond to Nairo's attack just enough to ensure not too much damage is done to his Yellow which will let Nairo off to the win. 2013 all over again. At the end of the Tour, Nairo will say that he and they (movistar) were very good and tried all attacks and came very close in Week 3. And if not for the fiasco in the flat stage in Week 1, they would have made it very close for the yellow. Lol.

Lol you're already designing conspiracy theories in order to cover yourself if Quintana happens to be the best. That's just clueless... Do you really believe Froome lost time on Alpe dHuez 2013 voluntarily?

 

[Põhja Konn]

If he wants to win this Tour, he must take things into his own hands. He has already been second, and already won white jersey. To crack Froome, he must force him out of his comfort zone. To do that, Nairo must also go out of his own comfort zone and take the battle to the territory unfamiliar to both of them.

Tomorrow is the perfect stage for that. Movistar should hammer it from the beginning (with it being such a short stage), specially on climbs. Then Quintana should go all out already half way up Croix de Fer and keep going to see where it takes him. Aim is to get the gap, burn off Sky doms (who have all shown evident decline in form) and force Froome to work from far out alone.

If he cracks himself and is caught, then so be it- at least he has tried. If he isn't caught, but Froome limits his losses relatively well, then there is Alpe d'Huez the next day to try again one last time.

Anything is better than just surrendering and accepting 2nd place.

 

[cineteq]

Re:

Why is Froome more likely to have an off day than not? What's this based on?

His alien nature.

 

[memyselfandI]

If he wants to win this Tour, he must take things into his own hands. He has already been second, and already won white jersey. To crack Froome, he must force him out of his comfort zone. To do that, Nairo must also go out of his own comfort zone and take the battle to the territory unfamiliar to both of them.

Tomorrow is the perfect stage for that. Movistar should hammer it from the beginning (with it being such a short stage), specially on climbs. Then Quintana should go all out already half way up Croix de Fer and keep going to see where it takes him. Aim is to get the gap, burn off Sky doms (who have all shown evident decline in form) and force Froome to work from far out alone.

If he cracks himself and is caught, then so be it- at least he has tried. If he isn't caught, but Froome limits his losses relatively well, then there is Alpe d'Huez the next day to try again one last time.

Anything is better than just surrendering and accepting 2nd place.

+1

It just needs others think same way too and that is a sort of problem. Contador prolly is w/o legs even if goes out solo from far. Nibali maybe could but would he? Valverde is waiting Quintana to crack and to climb on the second spot, true team player One of them should escape with Talansky and where is Arredondo when you need him!?

Should..Would..

 

[46&twoWheels]

taken from Marca's comment section

I don't speak spanish but this caught my eye immediately

"El último dia, en los Campos Eliseos, Quintana lanzará un ataque a 500m de meta"

LOL

 

[bala v]

If he wants to win this Tour, he must take things into his own hands. He has already been second, and already won white jersey. To crack Froome, he must force him out of his comfort zone. To do that, Nairo must also go out of his own comfort zone and take the battle to the territory unfamiliar to both of them.

Tomorrow is the perfect stage for that. Movistar should hammer it from the beginning (with it being such a short stage), specially on climbs. Then Quintana should go all out already half way up Croix de Fer and keep going to see where it takes him. Aim is to get the gap, burn off Sky doms (who have all shown evident decline in form) and force Froome to work from far out alone.

If he cracks himself and is caught, then so be it- at least he has tried. If he isn't caught, but Froome limits his losses relatively well, then there is Alpe d'Huez the next day to try again one last time.

Anything is better than just surrendering and accepting 2nd place.

+1

It just needs others think same way too and that is a sort of problem. Contador prolly is w/o legs even if goes out solo from far. Nibali maybe could but would he? Valverde is waiting Quintana to crack and to climb on the second spot, true team player One of them should escape with Talansky and where is Arredondo when you need him!?

Should..Would..

What others?! If others were good they wouldn't be 6-7 minutes behind. It's him vs Froome if he wants to win! Let Valverde fights for his podium, he can't do much against Froome anyway. He needs to attack tomorrow, he needs to attack hard, he needs to attack multiple times if necessary, and he needs to attack from far out!